/ 


DRAMAS  OF  THE  BIBLE 


t  & 


Dramas  of  the  Bible 

A  Literary  Interpretation  of 
The  Book  of  Job 

and 

The  Song  of  Solomon 

By 

JOHN  S.  FLORY,  Ph.  D.,  Litt.,  D. 

President  Emeritus  and  Professor  of  English, 
Bridgewater  College;  Author  of  Literary 
Activity  of  the  Brethren  in  the 
Eighteenth  Century,  etc. 


BOSTON  COLLEGE  LIBRARY 
CHESTNUT  HILL,  MASS, 

1923 

THE  STRATFORD  COMPANY 

Publishers 

Boston,  Massachusetts 


Copyright,  1923 

The  STRATFORD  CO.,  Publisher* 
Boston,  Mass. 


The  Alpine  Press,  Boston,  Mass.,  U.  S.  A. 


Dedication 


To  my  classes  in  Biblical  Literature, 
past  and  to  come,  with  the  hope  that 
the  perusal  of  these  pages  may  be  at¬ 
tended  with  as  much  pleasure  and  in¬ 
terest  as  the  preparation  of  them  has 
been,  this  volume  is  affectionately 
dedicated. 


\ 


I 


Contents 

I.  THE  BOOK  OF  JOB 

Page 

Preface . 9 

Introduction . 11 

Authorship  of  the  book  —  Who  was  Job  ?  —  Where  was 
the  land  of  Uz  ?  —  Eliphaz  —  Tenia  —  Bildad  —  Shuah 
—  Zophar —  Naama  —  Who  is  Elihu? —  The  life  por¬ 
trayed  —  The  religion  of  the  poem  —  The  age  that  pro¬ 
duced  it  —  Literary  form  of  the  book  —  The  general 
divisions. 

The  Prologue . 25 

Its  form  and  purpose  —  The  society  revealed  —  The 
religion  —  Satan  introduced  —  His  employment  —  His 
nature  and  character  —  Job  tested  —  Purpose  of  the 
test  —  Philosophies  of  life  —  A  further  test  —  Job’s 
wife  —  His  integrity  —  Job’s  friends  come  to  comfort 
him. 

Act 

i  The  First  Cycle  of  Discussion  ...  39 

A  week  of  silence  —  Job  curses  the  day  of  his  birth  — 

Form  of  his  speech  —  Eliphaz  brands  Job  as  a  sinner 
—  His  argument  from  experience  —  He  points  the  rem¬ 
edy  —  Job  replies  —  He  prays  for  death  —  Job  voices 
his  disappointment  in  his  friends  —  He  seeks  the  prin¬ 
ciple  of  world  government  —  Bildad’s  brusque  accusa¬ 
tion —  His  hard  philosophy  —  His  dogmatism  —  Job’s 
angry  retort  —  He  bemoans  his  lot  —  He  complains  of 
God’s  arbitrary  treatment  of  him  —  Wishes  for  an  um¬ 
pire  to  mediate  between  him  and  God  —  His  dark  fore¬ 
boding —  Zophar’ s  blunt  accusation  —  His  crushing 
logic  —  Failure  of  the  friends’  arguments  —  Job’s  sar¬ 
castic  retort  to  the  three  —  He  refutes  their  argument 
—  He  vindicates  God  —  He  reviews  his  life  and  finds  it 
right  —  Is  mystified  at  God’s  dealing  with  him  —  His 
dejection  —  His  prayer  for  death. 

ii  The  Second  Cycle  of  Discussion  ...  65 

The  discussion  resumed  —  Eliphaz  taunts  Job  for  pre¬ 
tended  wisdom  —  He  boasts  his  knowledge  of  ancient 
culture  —  Job  scorns  the  message  of  his  friend  —  His 
miserable  plight  —  Job  in  tears  —  He  appeals  his  cause 
to  God  —  His  heart  yearns  for  friendship  —  Is  disap¬ 
pointed  in  his  friends  —  Bildad  misconstrues  Job’s 
words  —  Delineates  the  career  of  the  godless  man  —  His 

[5] 


Contents 


Act 

unrelenting-  severity  —  Job  scorns  the  proffered  advice 
■ —  He  feels  himself  misunderstood  by  both  his  friends 
and  God — -A  picture  of  moral  depravity  —  Job  at  the 
brink  of  despair  —  He  must  vindicate  himself  by  leaving 
a  record  of  his  life  —  I  know  that  my  redeemer  liveth  — 
Job  asserts  his.  dignity  —  Zophar’s  sharp  rebuke  —  His 
heartless  creed  —  His  utter  failure  to  understand  Job  — 
Job’s  calm  dignity  —  He  refutes  his  opponents  —  He 
explains  God’s  plan  of  ruling  the  world. 

hi  The  Third  Cycle  of  Discussion  . 

The  question  still  unsettled  —  Elipliaz  produces  new 
charges  against  Job  —  A  victim  of  his  own  theories  — 
The  fine  elevation  of  his  closing  words  —  Job  bewails 
God’s  withdrawal  from  him  —  His  bewilderment  —  His 
wish  for  a  court  of  justice  to  which,  he  could  appeal  — 
Job  argues  from  experience  —  Bildad’s  vindication  of 
God’s  providence  —  His  narrow  views  —  Job’s  sharp 
retort  —  He  refutes  Bildad  —  He  maintains  his  integ¬ 
rity —  Zophar’s  lost  speech  —  The  chorus  —  Its  pur¬ 
pose  —  The  presentation  —  Where  shall  wisdom  be 
found? — Behold  the  fear  of  the  Lord,  that  is  wisdom 
—  Job  a  prince  of  God  —  He  reviews  his  career  — 
Longs  for  former  prosperity  and  happiness  —  Takes  an 
inventory  of  his  life  —  His  masterly  vindication  of  his 
course. 

iv  Elihu’s  Intervention . 

Elihu’s  speech  —  Its  relation  to  the  rest  of  the  drama 
—  Who  is  Elihu  ?  —  He  explains  his  presence  —  He 
arraigns  Job  —  Convicts  him  of  sin  —  Explains  how 
God  reveals  himself  to  men  —  Misquotes  Job’s  words 
—  Loses  his  way  in  his  argument  — -  Convicts  Job  of 
folly  and  impiety  —  He  classifies  mankind  —  His  ob¬ 
scure  reasoning  — ■  Ends  his  speech  with  a  poem  —  His 
nature  poety  —  The  trend  of  his  argument. 

v  The  Reconciliation . 

Many  tangled  threads  of  discussion  —  Purpose  of  the 
delayed  action  —  God’s  speech  from  the  whirlwind  — 

Simplicity  of  the  message - Job  is  led  to  discover  the 

truth  for  himself  —  All  phases  of  the  creative  act  lead 
back  to  God  —  Job’s  place  among  created  beings  —  His 
relation  to  the  divine  plan  —  His  understanding  of 
God’s  providence  —  His  confession  of  mistakes  —  His 
reconciliation  with  God. 


The  Epilogue . 

Form  of  the  epilogue  —  Its  purpose  —  Job’s  relation 
to  his  friends  —  A  priest  of  God  —  His  final  prosperity 

[6] 


Page 


88 


119 


143 


160 


Contents 


II.  THE  SONG  OF  SOLOMON 
Introduction  ...... 

Famous  songs  of  the  Bible  —  How  the  Song  of  Songs  is 
related  to  Solomon  —  Time  of  the  poem  —  Its  form  — 
Its  meaning  —  Method  of  interpretation. 


Scene 

i  Royal  Lovemaking . 

Setting  of  the  drama  —  The  characters  —  Frankness  of 
the  language  —  The  chorus  —  The  dialogue  —  Royal 
lovemaking  —  Who  is  the  Shulammite? 

n  Reminiscence  of  a  Royal  Courtship  . 

Love  in  a  cottage  —  A  royal  serenade  —  Love  and  duty 
—  A  troubled  dream  —  In  quest  of  him  whom  my  soul 
loveth. 


hi  A  Bridal  Procession  and  Royal  Espousals 

The  bridal  procession  —  The  citizens  of  Jerusalem  — 
The  daughters  of  Zion  —  Royal  wooing  —  Pledges  of 
espousal. 

iv  Misgivings  and  Confidences  of  W edded  Love 

“I  was  asleep  but  my  heart  waked” — The  dream  re¬ 
lated —  The  charms  of  a  lover —  ‘‘Thou  are  fair,  O  my 
love”  — Royal  distinction. 

v  The  Lure  of  Beauty  and  of  Home 

A  choral  chant  —  A  story  from  life - The  dance  of 

Mahanaim  —  Longing  for  home  — ■  Idyllic  domestic  bliss. 

vi  The  Rewards  of  Virtue  .  .  .  . 

A  wish  realized  —  Love  is  strong  as  death  —  The  old 
hearthstone  —  The  family  circle  —  Virtue  has  its  re¬ 
wards  —  The  epilogue. 


165 

169 

177 

181 

187 

193 

198 

» 

»  > 


[7] 


Preface 


THIS  book  grew  out  of  class  discussion.  It  is  not 
a  commentary.  It  makes  no  pretense  to  a  textual 
study  of  the  books  treated.  When  the  text  is  quoted, 
which  is  frequent,  it  is  for  the  purpose  of  determin¬ 
ing  the  meaning  of  the  author’s  thought. 

It  is  assumed  that  the  writers  of  the  Book  of  Job 
and  the  Song  of  Solomon  each  had  a  message  to 
deliver.  To  read  this  message  in  the  author’s  words 
has  been  our  constant  aim.  Our  study  is  therefore 
an  interpretation,  an  effort  to  trace  a  line  of  thought 
rather  than  to  discover  subtle  meanings  of  words. 

In  order  to  arrive  at  the  true  message  the  simplest 
form  of  interpretation  has  been  adopted.  This  is  the 
literary  method.  These  books  are  conceived  as  master¬ 
pieces  of  literary  art,  in  dramatic  form.  The  ordinary 
principles  of  literary  interpretation  are  applied  in 
their  simplest  terms. 

The  present  writer  has  no  theories  to  advance, 
neither  does  he  desire  to  surprise  the  reader  with 
ingenuous  discoveries.  To  trace  out  the  unmistakable 
line  of  thinking  pursued  by  the  author  and  set  it 
forth  in  terms  of  its  clear  meaning,  has  been  his  sole 
purpose.  Nothing  is  admitted  into  the  interpretation 
which  is  not  in  the  original  text,  either  expressed  or 
clearly  implied. 

Association  with  college  students  during  a  good 
many  years  has  convinced  the  writer  that  the  messages 

[9] 


Dramas  of  the  Bible 


of  these  poems  are  a  sealed  book,  even  to  many 
highly  intelligent  readers.  That  the  present  volume 
may  serve  a  useful  purpose  in  unlocking  this  rich 
treasure  house  of  wisdom  and  beauty  and  make  it 
available  to  the  average  reader  is  his  ardent  wish. 

The  citations  of  biblical  texts  are  from  the  American 
Revision.  However,  the  other  standard  versions  have 
been  constantly  compared  with  this  in  an  effort  to 
arrive  at  the  clearest  and  simplest  expression  of  the 
sense  intended. 

It  has  been  thought  best  not  to  encumber  the  work 
with  notes  and  references  so  that  the  message  un¬ 
adorned  and  unadulterated  may  have  free  course. 

Jno.  S.  Flory 

Bridgewater,  Virginia 
May  24,  1923 


[10] 


Introduction 


THE  Book  of  Job  is  one  of  the  great  masterpieces 
of  literature.  It  comes  to  us  out  of  the  ancient 
world  full  of  primitive  vigor  and  force,  delineating  in 
a  series  of  scenes  the  struggles  of  the  soul  in  its  earthly 
conflict.  From  the  very  start  it  strikes  deep  into  the 
profound  experiences  of  life.  It  reflects  a  remark¬ 
able  grasp  of  life’s  problems  and  the  serious  earnest 
spirit  in  which  a  heroic  soul  meets  them. 

The  author,  whoever  he  was,  represents  ripe  culture 
and  broad  experience.  He  was  not  only  a  master  of 
his  own  language  and  its  literature,  but  was  also 
deeply  versed  in  the  learning  of  the  East  in  his  day. 
He  had  passed  through  the  fiery  trials  of  religious 
experience  and  had  mingled  with  men  in  the  various 
walks  of  life.  He  was  by  nature  a  prince  among  men, 
a  leader  of  thought  and  opinion.  He  represents  the 
best  culture  of  the  ancient  world,  its  truest  scholar¬ 
ship  and  highest  ideals  of  life.  His  book  is  a  monu¬ 
ment  to  his  genius,  yet  of  his  personal  life  or  his 
name  he  has  left  us  not  a  trace.  He  has  passed  into 
oblivion  as  completely  as  the  zephyr  that  follows  the 
storm,  but  he  has  made  for  himself  a  large  place  in 
universal  literature  and  has  left  his  voice  ringing 
down  through  the  ages. 

Before  entering  upon  a  discussion  of  the  book  it 
may  be  helpful  to  notice  briefly  in  this  chapter  some 
of  the  considerations  that  naturally  arise.  Who  are 


[11] 


The  Book  of  Job 


the  people  whose  life  and  institutions  we  are  to  study  ? 
What  age  of  the  world  developed  the  civilization  here 
presented  to  us  ?  And  in  what  country  did  this  type 
of  civilization  and  religion  flourish?  Our  attitude 
towards  the  story  is  likewise  a  matter  of  importance. 
Is  the  life  portrayed  historical  or  the  work  of  mere 
fancy?  Is  Job  a  man  or  a  myth?  We  should  also 
determine  the  literary  form  of  the  work.  Is  it  epic  or 
dramatic?  Is  the  motive  theological  discussion  or 
practical  religion? 

The  author  identifies  himself  with  his  hero.  The 
experiences  of  Job  are  the  experiences,  the  hopes, 
fears,  aspirations  of  the  author.  Everything  in  the 
book  is  enveloped  in  an  atmosphere  of  realism  and 
truth.  When  Bunyan  in  Bedford  Jail  lived  through 
the  spiritual  struggles  of  Christian,  which  he  later 
embodied  in  his  immortal  Pilgrim’s  Progress,  he  was 
but  treading  in  the  footsteps  of  our  author  and  put¬ 
ting  in  immortal  literature  the  visions  and  raptures 
of  his  ecstatic  soul. 

Job  is  everywhere  spoken  of  as  a  real  historic 
personage.  The  prophet  Ezekiel  groups  him  in  a 
class  with  Noah  and  Daniel.  The  apostle  J ames  writes, 
“Ye  have  heard  of  the  patience  of  Job,”  as  he  might 
have  said  of  a  personal  friend.  And  the  opening 
words  of  the  book,  “There  was  a  man  in  the  land  of 
Uz  whose  name  was  Job,”  presents  him  with  an  un¬ 
questioned  air  of  historic  reality.  And  this  is  the 
attitude  that  has  generally  been  taken  by  Christian 
scholars.  If  the  details  of  the  history  have  been 
somewhat  modified  to  meet  artistic  and  didactic  ends, 


[12] 


Introduction 


there  is  scarecly  a  doubt  that  the  story  arises  out  of  a 
definite  background  of  historic  fact. 

But  where  was  the  land  of  Uz,  the  scene  of  Job’s 
suffering?  Undoubtedly  it  was  the  land  inhabited  by 
the  descendants  of  Uz.  This  name  was  not  uncommon 
among  the  ancients  of  the  East  and  was  borne  by 
several  of  the  patriarchs.  The  first  of  these  was  a 
grandson  of  Shem,  but  as  many  generations  of 
Noah’s  descendants  seem  to  have  dwelt  in  the  upper 
Euphrates  valley  before  the  Babel  dispersion,  he  may 
safely  be  eliminated  from  those  who  migrated  and 
gave  their  names  to  remote  regions.  The  second  bear¬ 
ing  the  name,  of  whom  we  have  record,  was  a  son  of 
Nahor,  a  brother  of  Abraham.  The  third  was  a 
descendant  of  Esau.  It  is  probable,  therefore,  that 
the  land  of  Uz  was  a  region  that  received  its  name 
from  association  with  one  or  the  other  of  these  two. 

This  region  has  often  been  identified  with  the 
Hauran  country  in  northeastern  Idumea.  For  cen¬ 
turies  there  has  been  a  tradition  connecting  Job’s 
sufferings  with  the  scene  of  an  ancient  monastery,  the 
ruins  of  which  have  been  unearthed  some  twenty  miles 
east  of  the  sea  of  G-alilee.  But  this  is  in  the  land  of 
Palestine.  The  land  of  Uz  was  doubtless  farther  south. 
It  is  more  probably  to  be  identified  with  lower  Arabia, 
the  portion  south  of  the  Dead  Sea  and  east  of  the 
Sinaitic  Mountains,  and  not  far  from  the  upper  waters 
of  the  Red  Sea.  This  locality  agrees  with  the  indica¬ 
tions  of  place  and  custom  in  the  story.  It  was  on  the 
routes  of  travel  from  the  south  and  east  and  would 
have  brought  wealthy  patriarchs  like  Job  in  touch 

[13] 


The  Book  of  Job 


with  the  culture  of  the  cities  of  Egypt  and  Syria, 
with  which  the  writer  was  evidently  familiar.  Some 
of  the  valleys  of  the  semi-arid  region  were  in  former 
times  quite  fruitful,  and  might  easily  have  been,  and 
doubtless  sometimes  were,  the  scene  of  such  wealth 
and  prosperity  and  patriarchal  dignity  as  is  attri¬ 
buted  to  Job. 

Other  characters  of  the  story  seem  to  belong  to  the 
same  region.  Some  of  their  names  and  the  places 
whence  they  come  are  found  among  the  same  people. 
For  instance,  Eliphaz  is  the  name  of  one  of  the  sons 
of  Esau,  and  this  Eliphaz  had  a  son  by  the  name  of 
Teman.  It  is  a  natural  inference,  therefore,  that  the 
Tema  whence  the  Eliphaz  of  our  story  came  was  a 
region  which  derived  its  name  from  Teman  the  grand¬ 
son  of  Esau.  This  was  long-famed  as  a  center  of 
culture  and  scholarship.  In  the  days  of  Jeremiah  the 
prophet  it  was  celebrated  for  the  wisdom  of  its  in¬ 
habitants.  Obadiah  also  refers  to  Tema  as  a  haunt 
for  wise  men,  and  the  center  of  the  culture  of  his  day. 
The  traditional  location  of  Tema  is  in  southern 
Idumea,  a  short  distance  east  of  the  Red  Sea  and  not 
very  far  south  from  the  land  of  Uz.  At  the  time  of 
the  poem  this  was  a  famous  center  of  the  main  caravan 
route  between  the  cities  of  Egypt  and  Damascus.  This 
location  is  in  keeping  with  all  the  known  facts  of  the 
place  and  is  in  entire  accord  with  the  indications  of 
our  story.  In  fact  the  agreement  is  so  complete  even 
to  details,  that  one  does  not  hesitate  to  accept  without 
qualification  the  traditional  site  as  correct  beyond 
question. 


[14] 


Introduction 


Shuah,  the  home  of  Bildad,  was  farther  east  and 
north,  bordering  on  the  eastern  edge  of  the  Arabian 
desert,  adjacent  to  the  rich  lands  of  the  Tigris- 
Euphrates  valley.  This  region  doubtless  acquired  its 
name  also  from  association.  Shuah  was  the  youngest 
son  of  Abraham  and  Keturah.  It  seems  very  natural 
that  after  “ Abraham  gave  all  that  he  had  to  Isaac” 
and  gave  only  gifts  to  his  other  children,  that  Shuah 
with  others  of  his  brethren  should  have  taken  up  their 
abode  in  the  country  already  occupied  by  Esau  and 
his  descendants.  And  this  view  is  further  confirmed 
when  we  read  that  “  Abraham  sent  his  other  children 
away  from  Isaac  his  son,  while  he  yet  lived,  eastward, 
unto  the  East  country.”  The  home  of  Bildad,  there¬ 
fore,  while  somewhat  remote  from  the  cultured  Tema, 
was  nevertheless  in  constant  touch  with  it,  the  two 
centers  being  united  by  kinship  of  blood  as  well  as  by 
a  community  of  interests  and  a  kindred  spirit. 

The  home  of  Zophar  can  be  identified  with  less 
certainty.  There  was  a  Naamah  in  Judea,  and  the 
name  occurs  several  times  among  the  towns  of  Syria. 
It  is  probable,  however,  that  the  home  of  the  third  of 
Job’s  friends  was  somewhere  in  the  region  to  the 
south,  and  probably  in  easy  touch  with  Tema  and 
Shuah.  These  three  friends  were  men  of  like  tastes, 
all  friends  of  Job,  each  a  patriarch  in  his  own 
country.  In  the  days  of  our  story  Naamah  was  un¬ 
questionably  a  seat  of  culture,  a  depository  of  ancient 
lore.  It  possessed  an  old  civilization,  staid  and  con¬ 
ventional,  intolerant  of  change.  It  is  evident  that  it 
was  an  isolated  community,  remote  from  the  routes 


[15] 


The  Book  of  Job 


of  travel.  If  an  inference  may  be  drawn  from  its 
chief  citizen,  Naamah  as  a  community  had  grown  old 
and  conservative  and  was  all-sufficient  unto  itself. 
Life  had  turned  into  narrow  channels  and  had  become 
formal,  cold  and  dogmatic.  It  was  steeped  in  tradition 
with  its  face  towards  the  past.  That  it  was  not  wholly 
cut  off  from  other  centers,  however,  is  shown  by  the 
fact  that  the  news  of  Job’s  affliction  penetrated  to 
this  out  of  the  way  corner  and  led  its  leading  citizen 
to  undertake  the  journey  of  consolation  with  his 
friends. 

The  other  actor  who  plays  an  important  role  in  the 
story  should  also  be  noted  here  in  his  relation  to  the 
others.  Elihu  describes  himself  as  the  son  of  Barachel 
the  Buzite.  Buza  was  undoubtedly  a  district  which 
took  its  name  from  Buz,  a  son  of  Nahor  and  brother 
to  Uz.  This  identifies  the  newcomer  with  the  same 
stock  whose  life  history  makes  up  our  story.  The 
locality  occupied  by  the  Buzites  is  unknown.  But 
long  years  after  the  time  of  our  story  the  prophet 
Jeremiah  mentioned  Buz  along  with  Uz,  Tema,  and 
Dedan,  the  last  on  the  Persian  Gulf.  As  all  of  these 
places  are  located  in  Idumea,  it  is  evident  that  the 
Buzites  occupied  a  section  of  territory  somewhere  in 
this  same  region. 

Who  then  are  the  people  whose  life  history,  religion 
and  experience  make  up  our  story?  It  has  been  sug¬ 
gested  that  Job  is  only  an  abbreviated  form  of  Jobab, 
which  was  the  name  of  one  of  the  descendants  of 
Esau.  If  this  is  admitted  the  five  leading  actors  of 
the  story  are  clearly  the  descendants  of  Abraham 

[16] 


Introduction 


through  Esau,  or  from  the  collateral  line  of  Nahor. 
The  home  of  the  ancient  civilization  they  represent  is, 
as  we  have  seen,  the  land  of  Edom,  occupied  by  Esau 
and  his  descendants.  It  seems  fairly  evident  then 
that  Job  was  not  an  Israelite  and  that  the  picture  of 
life  the  hook  portrays  is  not  a  chapter  in  the  history 
of  God’s  peculiar  people. 

The  Idumeans  or  Edomites,  because  of  their  com- 
mon  origin,  served  the  same  God  as  the  Hebrews,  but 
their  worship  was  strictly  of  the  patriarchal  type  and 
seems  to  have  been  almost  a  pure  nature  worship.  If 
it  is  understood  that  God’s  special  revelations  were 
primarily  restricted  to  the  legitimate  seed  of  Abraham, 
the  heirs  of  the  promise,  then  the  simple,  noble  nature 
worship  of  Job  and  his  contemporaries  will  be  readily 
appreciated.  They  seem  to  be  without  any  special 
divine  revelation.  They  know  God  from  his  manifes¬ 
tations  in  nature  and  from  his  providences  in  the 
affairs  of  men.  Religious  institutions,  except  the  most 
primitive,  are  unknown  to  them.  And  there  is  no 
indication  that  God  presents  himself  to  any  of  them  in 
angelic  form  or  otherwise,  as  he  frequently  did  to 
Abraham,  Isaac  and  Jacob,  the  patriarchs  of  Israel. 
The  religion  of  the  poem  is  therefore  different  in 
important  respects  from  that  presented  anywhere  else 
in  the  Sacred  Volume. 

This  fact  may  be  taken  as  an  explanation  of  the 
absence  of  any  reference  in  the  book  of  Job  to  the 
law  of  Moses,  or  the  elaborate  ritual  that  was  worked 
out  under  its  provisions.  Nowhere  in  the  entire  book 
is  there  a  hint  of  a  special  revelation,  of  the  Mosaic 


[17] 


The  Book  of  Job 


code,  of  the  temple,  or  of  the  Egyptian  bondage.  The 
total  absence  of  any  reference  to  these  important  ex¬ 
periences  and  institutions  in  the  life  of  the  Hebrews 
must  be  taken  as  conclusive  evidence  that  the  writer 
knew  nothing  of  them.  If  the  author  of  the  book  was 
an  Israelite,  as  some  have  supposed,  and  lived  after 
Sinai  and  the  Temple  he  did  what  no  other  author 
has  ever  succeeded  in  doing  —  completely  cutting 
himself  off  from  his  country’s  past.  It  is  difficult  to 
adequately  reproduce  a  past  civilization;  it  is  more 
difficult  to  completely  cut  oneself  off  from  all  reference 
to  it.  And  for  a  great  national  poem,  treasuring  the 
deepest  experiences  of  national  life,  to  do  so  would 
be  so  unprecedented  as  to  amount  to  impossibility. 

Then  one  of  two  things  is  practically  certain.  Either 
the  author  of  Job  lived  at  a  late  period  and  knew 
nothing  of  the  detail  of  Israelitish  history  through  the 
Egyptian  and  Wilderness  periods  and  the  early  mon¬ 
archy,  or  the  time  of  the  poem  antedates  these  events. 
Since  the  former  assumption  is  incompatible  with  all 
the  evidence  and  reason,  as  we  have  seen,  the  latter 
inference  seems  all  the  more  probable.  This  early 
^  fdate  of  the  poem  has  been  discredited  because  it  is 
^thought  that  at  that  time  letters  had  not  been  suf- 
/ficiently  developed  to  produce  a  masterpiece  of  such 
\  literary  completeness.  But  if  we  accept  the  author¬ 
ship  of  Moses  for  the  Pentateuch  it  is  difficult  to  see 
how  serious  objection  can  be  urged  against  placing 
the  authorship  of  Job  in  the  same  period.  In  some¬ 
what  different  ways,  it  may  be,  both  show  literary 
ability  of  the  very  first  order;  and  all  things  con- 


[18] 


1 


Introduction 

sidered,  it  must  be  admitted  that  the  age  of  Moses  or 
the  time  of  the  Egyptian  bondage  is  most  probably  the 
age  that  brought  forth  this  monumental  work. 

There  is  no  inherent  improbability  in  this  assump¬ 
tion.  The  references  to  city  life  in  the  poem,  it  has 
been  suggested,  are  not  in  accord  with  this  early  date. 
But  when  we  remember  that  in  the  days  of  Abraham, 
hundreds  of  years  before  this,  there  were  already  large 
cities,  and  these  in  close  proximity  to  the  land  that 
produced  the  work,  Damascus,  Sodom,  and  the  cities 
of  Phoenecia,  the  objection  loses  force.  Again  the 
spirit  of  the  life  reflected  in  the  poem  is  different  from 
that  of  the  later  monarchy,  to  which  time  the  poem  has 
frequently  been  referred.  The  life  of  the  poem  is 
simple,  dignified,  and  characterized  by  freedom  of 
activity  and  thought  that  is  foreign  to  the  conven¬ 
tional,  turbulent  life  in  the  time  of  the  kings.  Even 
if  the  hand  of  a  later  writer  should  be  deemed  neces¬ 
sary  to  account  for  the  literary  perfection  of  the  work, 
there  is  scarcely  a  doubt  that  the  poem  in  its  essential 
integrity,  as  we  have  it,  is  the  product  of  the  age  of 
the  patriarchs. 

Another  matter  of  importance  in  the  general  con¬ 
sideration  of  the  work  is  its  literary  form.  The  book 
of  Job  is  a  drama,  the  first  great  dramatic  utterance 
of  the  human  soul.  It  deals  with  the  profound  ex¬ 
periences  of  man  in  this  world  and  his  problems  for 
the  world  to  come.  These  experiences  are  expressed 
by  the  different  characters  in  the  play  each  in  his  own 
person.  The  characterization  is  strong,  the  individual 
actors,  even  when  holding  like  views,  are  characterized 

4 

[19] 


1 


The  Book  of  Job 


by  traits  that  make  them  individual.  In  fact  all  the 
established  requirements  of  dramatic  art  are  observed 
in  the  structure  of  the  work.  The  drama  proper  is  in 
poetic  form,  with  a  prologue  and  an  epilogue  in  prose. 
We  shall  note  the  several  divisions  of  the  book  very 
briefly. 

The  prologue  comprises  the  first  two  chapters  of  the 
book.  This  prose  introduction  is  undoubtedly  intended 
to  be  presented  by  a  Chorus.  It  represents  Job  in  the 
midst  of  his  prosperity  and  sets  the  conditions  out  of 
which  the  story  of  the  drama  rises.  By  means  of  a 
chant  or  recitative  the  prologue  spreads  the  scene  and 
introduces  the  characters  and  determines  the  course 
of  the  history  of  the  play.  This  is  an  old-fashioned 
device,  it  may  be,  for  the  most  part  discarded  in  the 
later  development  of  the  art,  but  was  generally  em¬ 
ployed  in  the  more  ancient  forms  of  dramatic  com¬ 
position  and  seems  so  natural  here  as  to  be  well  nigh 
indispensable. 

Act  I  is  made  up  of  chapters  three  to  fourteen,  and 
consists  of  a  round  of  discussions  between  J ob  and  the 
three  friends  who  have  come  to  comfort  him.  Job  is 
the  first  speaker  but  does  not  lead  in  the  discussion. 
Chapter  three  is  his  first  speech.  This  is  a  remarkable 
outburst  of  malediction  and  grief  caused  by  his  suffer¬ 
ing.  For  his  seeming  impiety  and  rashness  he  is 
severely  taken  to  task  by  his  friends  in  turn.  They 
become  his  accusers  and  employ  harsh  terms  in  deal¬ 
ing  with  him.  Job  is  on  the  defensive.  He  endeavors 
to  defend  his  conduct  as  well  as  the  integrity  of  his 


[20] 


Introduction 


heart  and  the  words  of  his  mouth.  The  controversy 
leads  to  no  conclusion. 

Act  II  (chapters  fifteen  to  twenty-one)  resumes  the 
discussion  left  unfinished  in  the  first  act.  It  is  on  the 
same  lines  as  before,  but  more  sharply  drawn  and 
more  severe.  The  friends  have  undertaken  an  im¬ 
possible  task.  They  have  undertaken  to  convict  Job 
of  wilful  sinning  and  have  constructed  theories  to 
prove  their  contention.  Their  theories  are  based  on 
observation,  experience,  and  the  philosophy  of  the 
ancient  sages.  J ob ’s  skill  in  refuting  their  arguments 
drives  them  into  personal  abuse  and  concrete  charges 
which  they  can  not  sustain.  Each  again  appears  in 
turn,  apparently  in  the  order  of  their  age,  the  oldest 
first.  Job  replies  to  each  in  order.  At  the  close  of 
the  act  the  discussion  is  no  nearer  reaching  a  con¬ 
clusion  than  in  the  first  act. 

Act  III  consists  of  chapters  twenty-two  to  thirty- 
one,  but,  unlike  the  first  two  acts,  this  discussion 
consists  of  three  integral  parts  corresponding  to  scenes 
in  a  play.  Chapters  twenty-two  to  twenty -seven  form 
a  third  and  last  cycle  of  discussion.  Here  the  three 
friends  appear  again  as  accusers  of  Job,  yet  each 
speaks  more  briefly  than  in  the  former  rounds.  Job 
again  replies  to  each  in  turn.  The  debate  on  the  whole 
does  not  advance  in  this  third  round  but  rather 
declines.  The  debaters  have  exhausted  themselves. 
They  have  no  further  stock  of  arguments  and  do  little 
more  than  repeat  themselves.  The  discussion  dwindles 
into  a  rehearsal  of  commonplaces  and  the  contentions 

[21] 


The  Book  of  Job 


become  confused  in  a  maze  of  inconsequential  dis¬ 
cussion. 

The  twenty-eighth  chapter  is  a  sublime  chant  of  the 
Chorus  in  which  the  thought  is  led  away  from  the 
confusion  into  which  it  has  fallen  and  is  made  to 
mount  on  the  wings  of  inspiration  to  the  clear  atmos¬ 
phere  of  exalted  and  serene  vision.  This  prepares  the 
way  for  a  final  speech  of  Job  in  which  he  appears  as 
a  prince  before  God,  triumphing  over  his  former  in¬ 
considerateness,  his  mounting  faith  bringing  him  into 
true  accord  with  his  Maker.  In  doing  this  he  lifts  the 
discussion  into  the  bright  sunlight  of  true  wisdom  and 
sublime  faith. 

Act  IV  (chapters  thirty-two  to  thirty-seven)  con¬ 
sists  of  a  speech  by  a  young  man  who  has  not 
hitherto  appeared  in  the  story.  This  is  Elihu,  the 
Buzite.  He  is  a  distant  relative  of  the  others,  a  con¬ 
siderably  younger  man  than  either  of  them,  but  has 
been  a  silent  listener  to  what  has  transpired.  He  has 
made  notes  on  the  discussion  and  is  burning  for  an 
opportunity  to  enter  into  the  controversy.  Job’s 
masterly  conclusion  of  act  three  leaves  his  three  com¬ 
forters  without  a  desire  to  renew  the  discussion.  This 
is  Elihu ’s  opportunity.  He  eagerly  seizes  it.  He 
makes  a  more  or  less  rambling  speech,  beginning 
various  lines  of  discussion  which  he  does  not  develop 
to  a  conclusion,  and  finally  ends  his  address  by  the 
recital  of  a  poem.  In  form  his  speech  is  ingenious 
and  portions  of  it  are  delivered  with  tact,  but  he  loses 
his  way  in  his  arguments  and  reaches  no  definite  con¬ 
clusion. 


[22] 


Introduction 


Act  V  begins  with  the  first  verse  of  chapter  thirty- 
eight  and  continues  to  the  end  of  the  sixth  verse  of 
chapter  forty-two.  The  greater  portion  of  this  act 
consists  of  a  speech  delivered  by  Jehovah  from  the 
whirlwind.  This  speech  is  directed  to  Job,  and  is  for 
the  purpose  of  showing  him  his  relation  to  the  universe 
of  created  things  with  which  he  lives  in  the  world,  and 
especially  his  relation  to  his  Creator.  In  the  presence 
of  Divine  Majesty  and  Power  Job  is  made  to  feel  his 
own  littleness  and  to  see  how  ill-advised  it  was  for 
him,  even  in  the  vexation  of  his  soul,  to  speak  words 
reflecting  upon  the  wisdom  of  the  Almighty  in  direct¬ 
ing  the  affairs  of  his  universe.  Job  sees  his  mistake, 
confesses  his  indiscretion,  'humbles  his  heart  before 
Jehovah,  and  is  reconciled  to  him.  This  reconciliation, 
in  which  Job  is  accepted  by  God,  constitutes  the  great 
moral  and  spiritual  victory  to  which  our  thought  has 
been  directed  throughout  the  play.  It  is  the  natural 
conclusion  to  which  the  whole  course  of  action  has 
tended,  and  in  which  the  motive  of  the  drama  finds 
its  culmination. 

The  Epilogue  comprises  the  last  chapter  from  the 
seventh  verse  on.  The  dramatic  action  has  been  con¬ 
cluded  with  the  fifth  act,  but  poetic  justice  seems- to 
demand  a  vindication  of  J ob ’s  course  in  this  life.  To 
supply  this  the  epilogue  is  added.  Job’s  restoration 
to  power,  wealth,  family  and  happiness  are  the 
natural  conditions  in  which  a  great  earthly  career 
will  find  its  vindication,  and  this  final  picture  of  Job 
in  prosperity  supplies  the  setting  that  gives  the  story 
a  satisfying  conclusion. 


[23] 


t 


f 


i 


/ 


The  Prologue 


WE  SHOULD  understand  the  prose  introduction 
to  the  hook  as  furnishing  the  necessary  back¬ 
ground  to  the  life  and  civilization  to  be  presented, 
so  that  we  may  have  an  accurate  understanding  of 
the  problems  and  experiences  that  make  up  the 
substance  of  the  story.  The  first  five  verses  intro¬ 
duce  us  to  the  prosperous  patriarchal  life  of  the 
orient.  Here  we  see  Job  in  the  midst  of  his  pros¬ 
perity  and  almost  ideal  success  and  happiness.  He 
is  surrounded  by  his  wealth  in  herds  and  flocks,  with 
his  broad  acres  of  pasture  lands,  his  splendid  family 
of  seven  sons  and  three  daughters  spending  their 
days  in  a  continual  round  of  innocent  pleasure ;  and 
the  entire  picture  is  sobered  and  dignified  by  the 
periodical  sacrifices  and  the  worship  of  the  patriarch. 

Job’s  vast  riches  seem  to  set  him  apart  from  the 
common  run  of  the  wandering  bedouin  of  the  desert, 
and  the  last  clause  of  the  third  verse  makes  it  per¬ 
fectly  clear  that  Job  was  not  a  wandering  Arab, 
but  that  he  lived  a  settled  life,  occupying  probably 
a  large  valley  for  his  flocks  and  herds  which  was 
recognized  as  his  own  individual  possession.  When 
he  is  described  as  the  greatest  of  all  the  “  children 
of  the  east”  he  is  classed  with  those  who  lived  in 
fixed  abodes,  who  frequently  accumulated  large 
possessions  and  became  princes  of  the  realm  in  which 
they  lived.  Such  a  man  was  Abram;  such  were 

[25] 


The  Book  of  Job 


Isaac,  Laban,  and  others  of  Old  Testament  record. 
The  children  of  the  east  lived  settled  lives  and  fre¬ 
quently  became  exceedingly  wealthy.  Such  a  man 
was  Job. 

The  picture  of  society  in  the  fourth  verse  repre¬ 
sents  the  same  kind  of  isolation.  Job’s  sons  and 
daughters  were  without  the  society  of  other  friends 
than  their  own  family.  They  passed  their  time  in 
beautiful,  almost  idyllic,  ease  and  pleasure.  Life  was 
a  gay  round  of  innocent  enjoyment  in  which  all 
participated. 

The  religion  of  the  poem  is  also  purely  patri¬ 
archal.  There  is  no  hint  that  these  fine  young 
people,  noble,  sweet  and  pure  as  they  were,  had  any 
religion  except  the  religion  of  the  family,  and  in  true 
patriarchal  fashion  this  was  administerd  by  the 
patriarch  for  his  entire  household.  Periodically  Job 
offered  burnt  offerings  to  Jehovah  in  behalf  of  his 
children,  not  that  he  knew  or  even  suspected  that 
they  had  done  wrong,  but  out  of  fear  that  in  the 
midst  of  their  festivities  they  may  have  forgotten 
God  or  renounced  him  in  their  hearts.  The  religious 
atmosphere  of  the  poem  is  beautifully  noble,  sincere 
and  devout,  and  in  keeping  with  the  picture  of  life 
otherwise  presented.  The  significant  phrase  of  the 
writer,  “Thus  did  Job  continually,”  leads  us  into 
the  appreciation  of  the  religious  habit  of  this  idyllic 
society. 

The  second  paragraph  transfers  the  scene  to 
heaven,  and  it  is  a  majestic  scene  that  the  author 
lays  open  to  the  imagination.  The  sons  of  God  come 


[26] 


The  Prologue 


presenting  themselves  before  Jehovah,  and  with  them 
Satan  presents  himself  also.  This  seems  to  be  a  scene 
in  which  God’s  vassals  appear  before  him  at  periodic 
intervals  to  present  their  accounts.  There  is  nothing 
seemingly  strange  about  Satan’s  appearance.  *  Jeho¬ 
vah’s  question,  “Whence  comest  thou?”  hardly  im¬ 
plies  that  he  was  out  of  place,  but  suggests  that  while 
the  others  were  duly  appointed  to  a  given  service, 
Satan  was  self-appointed.  But  all  come  alike  to  render 
account.  There  is  no  reproof  or  censure,  and  Satan’s 
answer  clearly  indicates  the  nature  of  his  mission. 
He  had  been  going  to  and  fro  in  the  earth  and 
walking  up  and  down  in  it.  Evidently  he  had  been 
on  a  mission  of  spying  into  the  affairs  of  men,  observ¬ 
ing  their  actions,  weighing  their  motives  and,  in  a 
critical  state  of  mind,  passing  judgment  on  their 
lives.  The  inference  is  clear  that  he  has  voluntarily 
taken  this  office  upon  himself,  but  having  done  this 
he  regards  himself  as  one  of  Jehovah’s  vassals  ex¬ 
pected  to  report  at  given  intervals.  He  regards  him¬ 
self  as  entirely  in  place  in  appearing  with  the  sons 
of  God. 

His  answer  to  Jehovah’s  question  invites  another. 
If  he  has  been  in  the  earth  looking  into  the  affairs 
of  men  he  will  have  observed  Job.  Jehovah  there¬ 
fore  invites  his  especial  attention  to  this  faithful 
servant  of  his,  and  points  out  to  Satan  that  there  is 
no  other  like  him  in  the  earth.  And  certainly  the 
fourfold  commendation  of  him  is  intended  to  convey 
to  us  an  ideal  among  men.  By  a  perfect  man  we  are 
to  understand  one  that  meets  the  highest  standards 


[27] 


The  Book  of  Job 


of  character  in  all  that  constitutes  manly  integrity, 
without  presuming  divine  perfection.  His  upright¬ 
ness  was  measured  in  terms  of  the  original  meaning 
of  the  word,  standing  erect,  straight,  looking  the 
world  in  the  face,  strong  in  right  purposes  and  a  pure 
heart.  As  one  that  feareth  God  the  secret  of  Job’s 
perfect  standard  of  manliness  is  pointed  out.  He  is 
a  God  fearing  man.  His  standards  of  living  are 
determined  by  contemplation  of  divine  ideals.  The 
fact  that  he  turns  away  from  evil  sums  up  his  char¬ 
acter  in  high  motive,  lofty  purpose  and  a  sincere 
desire  to  follow  in  right  paths.  So  God’s  commenda¬ 
tion  of  Job  presents  our  hero  to  us  in  a  way  that 
attracts  our  admiration  and  earnest  consideration. 

Wonder  may  arise  as  to  why  God  should  call 
Satan’s  attention  to  his  faithful  servant.  A  further 
study  of  the  book  will  make  this  clear.  The  purpose 
of  the  drama  is  to  pass  Job  through  the  dark  waters 
of  religious  trial.  It  is  natural  that  Jehovah  should 
lead  him  into  these  experiences  just  as  he  led  Christ 
into  the  wilderness  of  his  temptation. 

Satan’s  answer  at  once  raises  the  issue.  His 
Satanic  majesty  can  not  imagine  Job  as  being  faith¬ 
ful  to  God  for  nothing.  It  is  God’s  blessing  that  has 
made  him  great.  By  this  means  God  has  placed  a 
hedge  about  him  and  shielded  him  from  the  reverses 
common  to  mankind.  Satan  chuckles  with  a  sneer 
as  he  reminds  Jehovah  of  this  fact  and  suggests  that 
under  the  circumstances  it  is  perfectly  natural  that 
Job  should  be  perfect,  upright  and  faithful.  But 
then  he  goes  on  to  point  out  that  if  God  would  re- 


[28] 


The  Prologue 


move  this  hedge  of  favor  he  should  look  for  a  change 
in  Job’s  conduct.  “Put  forth  thy  hand  now  and 
touch  all  that  he  hath  and  he  will  renounce  thee  to 
thy  face.” 

Satan  is  ever  ready  to  discredit  the  honest  actions 
of  men.  To  him  Job  was  a  mere  time  server.  He 
would  strip  honest  living,  true  fidelity,  uprightness 
and  honor  of  all  sincerity  and  reduce  it  to  the  sordid 
materialistic  philosophy  of  life  which  he  represents. 
This  view  of  Satan  sets  one  of  the  distinctive  prob¬ 
lems  of  the  book.  The  basis  of  Job’s  religion  is  put 
in  question.  How  will  he  stand  the  test  of  his  faith 
in  God? 

In  order  that  the  teaching  of  the  drama  may  stand 
out  with  prominence  Jehovah  is  represented  as  plac¬ 
ing  all  the  property  of  Job  at  the  disposal  of  Satan. 
Job  is  therefore  the  innocent  victim  of  Satan’s  malice 
to  prove,  not  to  Satan,  but  to  us,  the  integrity  of  a 
true  heart  in  the  crucible  of  fiery  trial.  In  this  sense 
Job  ceases  to  be  an  individual  and  becomes  a  type  — 
a  type  of  the  faithful  men  of  all  ages  who  have  risen 
above  the  besetments  of  time  and  condition  and 
tower  into  the  glorious  light  of  sublime  and  im¬ 
perishable  achievement. 

We  should  not  fail  to  observe  also,  the  overruling 
providence  of  God  as  clearly  indicated  in  these  open¬ 
ing  scenes.  Satan  is  given  command  over  Job’s 
property  but  is  forbidden  to  touch  the  man.  Satan  is 
therefore  in  a  state  of  vassalage  to  Jehovah.  He  can 
exercise  only  such  power  as  is  granted  to  him. 

But  what  is  the  nature  of  this  Satan  with  whom 


[29] 


The  Book  of  Job 


Job  had  to  deal?  He  is  not  pictured  to  us  with  horns 
or  a  cloven  foot  or  any  other  marks  of  distinct 
hideousness.  He  is  very  unlike  the  enormous  monster 
of  Milton’s  poem,  towering  into  the  clouds  in  bulky 
ugliness,  or  creating  terror  by  his  hideous  aspect. 
Nor  does  he  resemble  the  three-faced  giant  of  Dante’s 
Inferno;  nor  yet  is  he  much  more  like  the  Mephis- 
topheles  of  Goethe.  Like  Mephistopheles  he  is  subtle 
and  cunning  and  clever,  but  his  temptation  is 
brought  in  another  way.  Mephistopheles  tempts  by 
corrupting  the  mind.  He  makes  evil  seem  good. 
He  perverts  the  standards  of  virtue  and  honor  and 
enslaves  his  victim  by  destroying  the  moral  founda¬ 
tions  of  life.  The  Satan  of  Job  has  no  access  to  the 
mind.  Moral  virtue  is  beyond  his  reach.  He  sneers 
at  good,  smiles  cynically  at  virtue,  and  pessimisti¬ 
cally  reduces  all  honor  and  virtue  to  a  paltry  and 
grovelling  standard  of  life.  His  solitary  station 
should  also  be  observed.  He  is  not  attended  by  a 
legion  of  menials  as  the  popular  conception  repre¬ 
sents  him.  He  has  no  agents.  He  is  his  own  minister, 
and  Job  is  his  victim.  It  is  therefore  a  personal  devil 
that  Job  has  to  do  with,  putting  to  the  severest  test 
his  faith  under  the  restrictions  imposed  by  the  Al¬ 
mighty. 

The  question  naturally  arises,  did  the  author  of  the 
poem  forget  himself  by  putting  Job’s  property  into 
Satan’s  hands?  By  no  means.  Satan  is  given  the 
opportunity  to  put  to  test  his  theory.  A  sudden 
destruction  of  Job’s  property  comes  like  an  ava¬ 
lanche  and  is  certainly  massed  by  the  writer  for  the 


[30] 


The  Prologue 


sake  of  effect.  Within  a  brief  hour  Job’s  vast  herds 
of  oxen,  asses,  sheep  and  camels  are  swept  away  by 
marauding  bands  or  destroyed  by  the  hail  and  light¬ 
ning  of  the  storm.  But  this  is  not  all.  As  a  fitting 
climax  of  the  awful  stroke  comes  the  news  that  the 
dwelling  of  Job’s  eldest  son  in  which  his  seven  sons 
and  three  daughters  were  banqueting  has  also  been 
caught  up  by  the  tornado,  destroyed  by  its  fury  and 
his  children  hurled  into  eternity.  Satan  has  had  his 
way,  but  what  of  Job? 

In  describing  his  demeanor  the  poet  has  risen  to 
the  dignity  of  his  theme.  According  to  the  oriental 
custom  Job  arose  from  where  he  had  sat  during  the 
recital  of  these  terrible  experiences.  He  rent  his 
robe,  he  shaved  his  head,  and  fell  face  forward  upon 
the  ground,  and  worshiped.  And  out  of  the  depth  of 
his  great  soul  came  forth  in  measured  tread  the 
words  that  reveal  how  deep  were  the  emotions  of 
his  heart:  ‘‘Naked  came  I  out  of  my  mother’s  womb 
and  naked  shall  I  return  thither:  Jehovah  gave  and 
Jehovah  hath  taken  away,  blessed  be  the  name  of 
Jehovah.”  There  is  not  a  syllable  of  complaint,  not 
a  whisper  of  faultfinding.  The  result  that  Satan  had 
anticipated  is  absolutely  wanting.  In  the  deep  integ¬ 
rity  of  his  heart  Job  is  true  to  his  God.  He  has  stood 
the  severe  test  without  flinching.  His  loyalty  is  un¬ 
shaken.  His  faith  is  supreme. 

But  what  is  the  significance  of  this  terrible  test 
of  a  faithful  and  godly  servant?  Can  it  be  that  God 
is  willing  to  sacrifice  the  good  of  his  servant  to  satisfy 
the  mere  caprice  of  Satan?  Far  from  it.  The  test 


[31] 


The  Book  of  Job 


was  not  for  Satan’s  gratification,  but  for  Job’s  good 
and  our  edification.  And  this  experience  sets  tbe 
chief  problem  of  the  drama.  In  order  that  this 
point  may  be  clearly  understood,  that  we  may  not 
miss  the  moral  background  of  the  story’s  message, 
let  us  note  as  briefly  as  we  may  the  theory  proposed 
by  Satan’s  sneering  remark:  “Put  forth  thy  hand 
now  and  touch  all  that  he  hath  and  he  will  renounce 
thee  to  thy  face.” 

The  problem  turns  on  Job’s  motive  for  serving 
God,  and  this  involves  the  purpose  of  life  and  what 
constitutes  its  chief  good.  Various  philosophies  of 
life  have  been  evolved,  several  of  which  are  touched 
by  Satan’s  question.  According  to  a  very  widely 
accepted  theory  life  is  for  enjoyment,  and  whatever 
interferes  with  enjoyment  is  bad.  Suffering  there¬ 
fore  becomes  evil  and  whatever  produces  pain  is 
wrong.  The  standard  of  good  in  human  experience  is 
therefore  determined  by  whether  it  produces  happi¬ 
ness  or  comfort,  or  the  reverse.  According  to  another 
theory  suffering  is  a  result  of  sin,  and  the  more  we 
sin  the  more  we  suffer.  Failure  in  life,  disease  and 
sickness  are  directly  traceable  to  the  violation  of 
divine  law.  Happiness,  prosperity  and  success  in 
life  are  on  the  other  hand  regarded  as  evidences  of 
divine  favor  and  approval.  The  better  a  man  is  the 
more  he  enjoys,  the  worse  he  is  the  more  he  suffers. 
These  are  widely  accepted  theories,  I  repeat,  finding 
expression  in  many  public  discourses,  and  enter  into 
the  very  warp  and  woof  of  much  of  the  current 
thinking. 


[32] 


The  Prologue 


But  both  theories  are  wrong.  Their  primary 
assumptions  are  untrue.  The  human  species  was  not 
created  simply  to  enjoy.  Neither  is  it  true  that  men 
suffer  in  this  world  in  proportion  to  their  sins.  Both 
of  these  theories  were  repudiated  by  the  Master  him¬ 
self  when  he  came  into  the  world.  It  is  not  strange 
that  such  theories  were  advanced  in  the  time  of  Job, 
but  that  they  have  been  perpetuated  down  through 
the  Christian  era  is  a  matter  of  wonder. 

Life  is  not  for  enjoyment,  but  for  man’s  good  and 
God’s  glory.  The  Savior  affirmed  as  much  when  on 
one  occasion  his  disciples  said  to  him,  referring  to 
the  man  who  had  never  seen,  “  Master  who  has 
sinned,  this  man  or  his  parents,  that  he  was  born 
blind?”  The  Master’s  reply  was,  “ Neither  he  nor 
his  parents,  but  that  the  works  of  God  might  be  made 
manifest.  ’  ’ 

If  men  were  required  to  suffer  in  this  life  in  pro¬ 
portion  to  their  sins,  and  were  prospered  in  accord¬ 
ance  wTith  their  goodness,  society  could  easly  be 
gauged  and  classified.  But  Jesus  taught  that  the 
sunshine  and  the  showers  come  alike  on  the  just  and 
the  unjust.  And  in  the  parable  of  the  tares  his 
instruction  was  “Let  both  grow  together  until  the 
harvest.” 

This  then  is  the  philosophy  of  life  that  we  are  to 
understand  is  held  up  in  the  poem.  Job’s  sufferings 
are  for  two  purposes.  They  ennoble  his  own  nature, 
and  glorify  God  in  his  dealings  with  men.  As  re¬ 
gards  Job  himself,  splendid  as  was  his  life  up  to  this 
tim«  it  was  still  not  perfect.  What  it  needed  for  its 


[33] 


The  Book  of  Job 


perfection  was  the  deep  soul  experience  that  refines 
man ’s  nature  by  searing  away  the  dross  of  worldliness 
and  permitting  the  soul  to  stand  forth  in  unswerving 
allegiance  and  triumphant  faith  in  an  all-wise  God. 

The  test  of  Job’s  fidelity  as  regards  the  honor  of 
God’s  name  appears  in  the  relation  of  physical  suf¬ 
fering  to  moral  evil.  Job  could  endure  intense 
physical  pain  and  mental  anguish  without  in  the 
least  impairing  the  moral  fiber  of  his  life.  Passing 
through  this  crucible  of  suffering  has  therefore  en¬ 
nobled  him  and  God’s  moral  purpose  in  his  develop¬ 
ment  stands  forth  in  clear  light.  Job  is  a  greater 
man,  a  better  man,  a  greater  honor  to  God,  more  self- 
respecting  in  his  own  eyes,  more  highly  esteemed  by 
his  associates  because  of  the  baptism  in  fire  through 
which  he  has  passed.  Physical  pain  and  mental 
suffering  are  a  very  different  thing  from  moral  evil. 
At  the  same  time  that  Job’s  sufferings  made  him  a 
stronger  man  these  same  experiences  likewise  magni¬ 
fied  the  wisdom  of  his  God  whose  purpose  was  to 
train  him  in  all  the  higher  attributes  of  moral  and 
religious  living. 

The  second  chapter  presents  another  scene  in 
which  the  sons  of  God  render  their  accounts  to 
Jehovah.  Satan  as  before  appears  with  them. 
Jehovah  interrogates  him  as  on  his  former  appear¬ 
ance.  He  answers  in  the  same  formula.  He  has 
been  away  on  another  quest  of  inquiring  into  the 
affairs  of  men,  seeking  something  with  which  he 
might  accuse  them.  Jehovah  again  reminds  him  of 
Job  and  points  out  his  fidelity,  significantly  adding, 

[34] 


The  Prologue 


“Although  thou  movest  me  against  him  to  destroy 
him.”  We  should  be  careful  not  to  misinterpret 
Jehovah’s  meaning  in  this  statement.  The  language 
might  seem  to  imply  that  Satan’s  insistence  was 
almost  producing  the  effect  of  persuading  Jehovah 
to  change  his  purpose.  God  would  be  unworthy  his 
name  as  an  all-wise  and  omnipotent  Father  if  his  pur¬ 
poses  could  thus  be  juggled  with  by  Satan.  The 
statement  simply  means  to  remind  Satan  of  how  he 
had  done  his  best  to  destroy  Job  and  yet  Job  re¬ 
mained  loyal  and  faithful  through  it  all. 

But  God’s  vindication  of  his  servant  brought  forth 
another  taunt  from  the  adversary.  “Put  forth  thy 
hand  now  and  touch  his  bone  and  his  flesh  and  he 
will  renounce  thee  to  thy  face.”  “Behold  he  is  in 
thy  hand,”  replied  Jehovah,  “only  spare  his  life.” 
A  second  time,  for  the  purposes  of  the  poem,  Job  is 
committed  into  the  hands  of  Satan  as  an  innocent 
victim  of  his  wrath,  but  with  definite  limitations  as 
before. 

After  an  interval  of  time  has  elapsed  Job  is  a 
second  time  enveloped  in  the  most  terrible  disaster. 
He  is  siezed  with  a  horrible  form  of  leprosy,  one  of 
the  most  dreaded  and  most  loathsome  of  diseases. 
Great  sheik  as  he  was,  he  becomes  an  outcast  and  is 
removed  from  his  dwelling  to  the  ash  heap  near  by. 
He  is  an  object  of  abject  misery.  His  own  household 
desert  him.  His  servants  give  him  scant  attention 
and  even  the  wife  of  his  bosom  makes  his  hard  lot 
still  harder.  It  is  her  desperate  suggestion  to  him 
that  defines  for  us  the  particular  basis  of  this  terrible 


[35] 


The  Book  of  Job 


ordeal  through,  which  he  is  made  to  pass.  It  is  his 
integrity.  As  in  the  former  test  Job  maintained  his 
loyalty  to  God,  so  now  he  vindicates  the  integrity  of 
his  heart  and  the  uprightness  of  his  life,  as  the  bond 
of  relationship  to  his  God  which  he  refuses  to  let  go. 

This  matter  of  Job’s  integrity  now  becomes  the 
battleground  of  the  poem.  Here  Job  takes  his  stand. 
He  knows  that  his  life  has  been  right.  His  unbounded 
faith  in  the  goodness  of  God  has  led  him  into  a  deep 
realization  of  his  power  and  his  mercy.  Altho  he 
can  not  understand  his  affliction,  he  accepts  it  as 
from  a  just  God  who  doeth  all  things  well.  His  faith 
is  unshaken,  his  allegiance  undiminished.  If  the 
deep  experiences  of  joy  and  contentment  that  have 
come  from  his  faith  in  Jehovah  should  be  given  up 
where  in  all  the  universe  would  he  seek  for  those 
things  that  make  life  worth  the  living?  There  is 
only  one  possibility,  only  one  hope  in  his  terrible 
ordeal,  that  is,  to  cling  securely  to  his  faith  in  God. 
So  through  the  most  fiery  trial  he  rests  his  whole  case 
on  the  satisfaction  that  in  his  heart  of  hearts  he  has 
been  faithful  to  Jehovah  and  has  maintained  his 
allegiance  to  him  in  word  and  deed. 

But  his  second  test  is  not  yet  complete.  In  the 
midst  of  the  mortal  anguish  of  his  soul  even  his  own 
wife  tempts  him  to  give  up  the  struggle,  curse  God 
and  die.  Her  part  in  the  story  has  been  variously 
interpreted.  She  has  been  called  an  ally  of  Satan 
and  many  other  hard  names.  But  I  think  her  part  in 
the  story  is  very  simple  and  natural.  An  Oriental 
^-^an,  even  wjfe  0f  a  great  sheik,  lives  her 

[36] 


The  Prologue 


life  on  a  much  lower  level  than  that  of  her  husband. 
She  could  not  be  supposed  to  rise  to  Job’s  level  of 
integrity  and  faith.  Her  suggestion  is  the  extreme 
of  unlogic.  She  forgot  that  if  Job  should  follow  it 
he  would  put  himself  in  a  much  worse  condition  than 
he  already  is.  Her  words  are  therefore  the  idle 
prattle  of  a  thoughtless  woman,  but  it  constitutes  a 
third  temptation  for  our  hero.  In  the  midst  of  his 
awful  suffering  Job  needed  encouragement  and  help. 
This  kind  of  discouragement  from  the  only  member 
left  of  his  immediate  family  might  well  nigh  be  the 
last  straw  that  would  bring  the  fatal  result.  Yet 
Job  treated  her  with  all  consideration.  He  did  not 
even  scold  her.  “Thou  speakest  as  one  of  the  foolish 
women,”  he  replied.  “What,  shall  we  receive  good 
at  the  hand  of  God  and  shall  we  not  receive  evil?” 
He  recognized  that  whatever  God  sends  has  its  use 
and  is  in  its  way  good.  He  has  triumphed  over  the 
temptation  to  give  up  his  integrity  and  his  faith  in 
Jehovah. 

And  now  we  come  to  the  last  scene  of  the  introduc¬ 
tory  story.  Job  in  his  abject  misery  is  sitting  in 
the  ashes  in  the  rear  of  his  home.  His  disease  has 
been  upon  him  sufficiently  long  that  the  news  of  his 
suffering  has  spread  beyond  the  neighborhood.  As 
a  great  sheik  he  has  friends  who  are  interested  in  his 
fortunes  and  his  welfare.  Some  of  them  plan  to  pay 
him  a  visit  and  try  to  bring  comfort  to  him  in  his 
sad  lot.  Eliphaz,  Bildad,  and  Zophar  prove  the 
reality  of  their  friendship  by  the  difficult  journey 
they  undertake  in  his  behalf. 

[37] 


The  Book  of  Job 


By  agreement  they  start  from  a  given  point,  prob¬ 
ably  Tema,  to  bring  comfort  and  help  to  their 
common  friend.  The  long  journey  across  the  desert 
on  camel  back  is  no  small  undertaking.  As  they 
come  in  sight  of  Job’s  habitation  they  see  the 
muffled  object  sitting  in  the  ashes,  but  fail  to  recog¬ 
nize  him  as  their  stately  friend  of  former  days.  But 
as  the  caravan  approaches  nearer,  and  they  find  that 
the  bent  and  dejected  object  is  no  other  than  the 
patriarch  of  Uz,  they  observe  all  the  oriental  forms 
of  deep  grief.  They  lift  up  their  voices  and  weep. 
They  rend  their  robes,  and  sprinkle  dust  upon  their 
heads.  There  is  no  question  about  the  sincerity  of 
their  sympathy  and  the  depth  of  sorrow  in  their 
hearts.  Job  is  too  miserable  to  be  approached.  They 
sit  down  upon  the  ground  near  him,  none  daring  to 
break  the  silence.  Whatever  we  may  think  of  their 
conduct  now  and  later,  we  can  not  for  a  moment 
question  the  real  sorrow  which  they  share  in  full 
measure  with  their  friend.  “Miserable  comforters” 
Job  calls  them  at  a  later  time,  and  certainly  they 
were.  But  this  does  not  impugn  their  good  motives 
and  their  sincere  suffering  with  him.  They  have 
come  as  friends.  They  desire  to  help  their  friend.  It 
is  a  tribute  to  their  bigness  of  heart  and  the  reality 
of  their  sympathy  that  in  his  dejection  they  could 
suffer  with  him  a  week  in  silence  before  venturing 
to  speak  a  word.  How  trivial  does  our  so-called 
sympathy  frequently  seem  in  comparison  with  that 
of  Job’s  friends. 


[38] 


ACT  I 


The  First  Cycle  of  Discussion 

(Chapters  III -XIV) 

Job  —  Chapter  III 

THE  drama  opens  with  Job  sitting  upon  his  ash 
heap  and  his  three  friends  beside  him.  During 
the  week  of  silence  their  thought  naturally  turns  to 
Job’s  sudden  reverse  of  fortune  and  the  causes  of  it. 
Each  in  his  own  way  constructs  a  theory  according  to 
his  point  of  view.  Job  with  the  rest  thinks  through 
the  whole  matter.  He  knows  he  is  the  same  man  he 
was  in  his  prosperity.  God  and  the  world  have  turned 
against  him.  There  is  no  longer  anything  to  live  for. 
Everything  worth  while,  wealth,  children,  health,  re¬ 
spect,  friends  have  been  taken  from  him.  It  was  an 
evil  day  that  brought  him  into  the  world.  In  his  long 
brooding  he  becomes  desperate.  His  pent  up  feelings 
can  no  longer  be  controlled.  He  breaks  the  ominous 
silence  with  a  burst  of  unrestrained  malediction  that 
is  almost  startling. 

This  first  speech  of  Job’s,  the  third  chapter  of  the 
book,  is  a  fine  lyric  poem.  It  is  pervaded  by  the  deep 
sadness  that  has  overwhelmed  him.  In  fact  it  is  one 
of  the  masterly  elegies  of  literature.  It  consists  of 
four  parts.  To  the  end  of  the  tenth  verse  the  thought 
is  directed  upon  the  day  when  he  was  born.  In  his 

[39] 


The  Book  of  Job 


utter  desolation  this  is  about  all  that  Job  has  left  to 
quarrel  with.  “Let  the  day  perish  wherein  I  was 
horn,  ’  *  he  begins.  He  wishes  it  might  he  blotted  from 
the  calendar,  that  it  should  never  be  thought  of  again. 
He  wishes  that  no  other  human  being  might  ever  come 
into  the  world  on  this  day.  He  would  bury  it  in 
oblivion  as  a  thing  accursed  and  forever  to  he  avoided. 

From  the  eleventh  to  the  nineteenth  verse  the  tone 
changes  from  curses  to  wailing.  Why  was  it  necessary 
that  he  should  be  born  at  all,  wretched  and  miserable 
as  his  lot  now  is ;  or  if  that  was  necessary  why  was  he 
not  allowed  to  die  at  the  instant  of  his  birth  as  an 
infant  that  never  saw  light?  In  his  desperation  it 
seems  to  him  that  this  would  have  been  a  great  bless¬ 
ing.  Of  course  his  cries  are  mere  ravings  but  they 
show  the  awful  extremity  to  which  his  affliction  has 
brought  him. 

In  the  third  section,  verses  twenty  to  twenty-four, 
Job  falls  into  a  series  of  questions.  Why  does  a  person 
have  to  live  who  is  in  perpetual  misery  and  longs  for 
death  ?  What  is  the  meaning  of  life  to  such  a  person  ? 
Why  must  he  endure  its  agony  to  no  purpose?  The 
emotion  of  this  speech  is  too  intense,  too  rapt,  to  be 
thought  through  calmly.  Job  is  on  the  verge  of 
frenzy.  He  passes  from  malediction  to  wailing  and 
from  wailing  to  questioning  simply  as  a  means  of  un¬ 
burdening  his  overloaded  soul.  But  in  all  this  Job  is 
finding  no  fault  with  God  or  in  any  sense  reproaching 
his  parents.  His  one  wish  is  that  Providence  had 
never  brought  him  into  the  world  and  that  the  day 
that  initiated  him  into  a  life  of  such  suffering  might  be 

[40] 


The  First  Cycle  of  Discussion 

henceforth  and  forever  unknown.  Of  course  Job  is 
distracted,  grief  has  driven  him  to  the  verge  of  in¬ 
sanity.  His  mind  is  tottering,  yet  he  maintains  his 
faith  in  God,  believes  in  the  integrity  of  his  life  and 
holds  on  tenaciously  to  all  that  is  left  to  him. 

In  the  last  two  verses  of  the  chapter  Job’s  thought 
turns  from  himself  to  his  friends.  What  is  the  mean¬ 
ing  of  the  long  week  of  silence  ?  Why  had  his  friends 
sat  here  through  all  these  days  and  nights  without 
giving  him  a  word  of  comfort?  Are  they  really 
friends  ?  Do  they  sympathize  with  him  in  his  affliction, 
or  are  they  casting  reproachful  eyes  upon  him?  He 
has  thought  in  this  vein  in  the  last  few  days.  The 
impression  grows  upon  him  that  they  are  not  his 
friends  but  critics,  that  they  are  wagging  their  heads 
at  him,  that  they  are  looking  with  sly  glances  at  him, 
and  that  instead  of  tenderness  and  sympathy  they 
are  weighing  him  in  the  scales  of  doubt  and  disap¬ 
proval. 

“For  the  thing  which  I  fear  cometh  upon  me, 

And  that  which  I  am  afraid  of  cometh  unto  me. 

I  am  not  at  ease,  neither  am  I  quiet,  neither  have  I 
rest, 

But  trouble  cometh.” 

Eliphaz  —  Chapters  IV,  V 

Job’s  suspicion  was  well  founded.  His  friends  had 
come  to  the  conclusion  that  he  was  a  great  sinner. 
They  were  hoping  that  when  he  spoke,  his  words  would 
be  a  confession  of  guilt  and  a  request  for  pardon. 

[41] 


The  Book  of  Job 


Eliphaz,  who  was  doubtless  the  oldest  of  the  three,  a 
man  of  dignity  and  venerable  appearance,  feels  it  his 
duty  to  correct  his  friend.  He  begins  his  speech  with 
great  deference  and  consideration.  “If  one  assay  to 
commune  with  thee,  wilt  thou  be  grieved V1  he  asks; 
but  without  waiting  for  a  reply  he  proceeds,  ‘  ‘  But  who 
can  withold  himself  from  speaking?”  After  such  a 
tirade  as  Job  had  just  delivered  who  could  refrain 
from  taking  him  to  task  and  setting  him  right?  He 
must  speak.  But  without  harshness  or  abuse  he  re¬ 
minds  Job  of  the  days  when  he  was  a  great  and  good 
man,  who  gave  wise  admonition  and  encouragement 
to  others.  How  he  had  strengthened  the  weak  hands 
and  given  support  and  courage  to  those  who  needed 
it.  But  now  since  distress  has  come  upon  him  he  has 
become  weak.  Affliction  has  humbled  him.  Has  he 
lost  his  religion?  Can  he  not  still  put  his  trust  in 
Jehovah?  To  the  mind  of  Eliphaz  Job  has  made  a 
great  mistake  which  can  easily  be  corrected. 

From  his  long  years  of  observation  and  experience 
he  has  learned  some  things  at  first  hand ;  but  in  all  his 
years  he  had  never  known  an  innocent  person  to 
perish.  His  observation  had  taught  him  that  those 
who  do  wrong  experience  the  evil  of  this  world.  God 
prospers  those  that  obey  him  and  withdraws  pros¬ 
perity  and  blessing  from  those  who  do  not.  Had  he 
not  seen  whole  bands  of  robbers  broken  up  and  scat¬ 
tered  by  the  over-ruling  providence  of  God?  Ex¬ 
perience  is  a  great  teacher  and  these  things  he  has 
seen.  Consequently  there  is  no  gainsaying  them. 

But  he  has  also  had  other  experiences.  In  the 

[42] 


The  First  Cycle  of  Discussion 

lonely  hours  of  the  night,  when  sleep  comes  heavily 
upon  men,  a  vision  was  once  presented  to  him.  This 
vision  transported  him  into  the  realm  of  the  spirit 
world.  He  felt  himself  in  the  very  presence  of  a  great 
Spirit.  He  could  even  distinguish  the  obscure  form 
but  could  not  make  out  the  appearance.  But  he  heard 
its  voice  distinctly  as  it  proclaimed  with  deep  and 
solemn  tones,  “Shall  mortal  man  be  more  just  than 
God?  Shall  a  man  be  more  pure  than  his  maker?” 
Now,  the  application  of  this  statement  is  not  very 
clear.  Job  had  nowhere  claimed  or  intimated  either 
such  justice  or  such  purity,  and  the  speaker’s  next 
statement  is  even  more  startling. 

“Behold  he  putteth  no  trust  in  his  servants 
And  his  angels  he  chargeth  with  folly.  ’  ’ 

It  is  clear,  however,  that  Eliphaz  is  putting  his  argu¬ 
ment  in  strong  form.  If  God  can  not  trust  his  own 
servants  and  the  holy  angels  need  correction  and  re¬ 
proof,  how  much  more  does  mortal  man  come  short  of 
the  standards  of  conduct  approved  by  God?  This  is 
a  sweeping  argument  to  prove  to  Job  that  he  is  un¬ 
questionably  a  sinner  in  God’s  sight.  The  matter  is 
disposed  of  as  though  the  last  word  had  been  said. 
Job  has  steered  his  skiff  upon  the  breakers.  He  is  like 
those  that  die  without  wisdom. 

Eliphaz  continues  his  experience.  He  recalls  an  in¬ 
cident  that  he  had  known.  A  godless  foolish  man 
had  risen  into  prominence  and  established  a  family. 
But  it  was  only  for  a  short  time.  Disaster  overtook 
him.  His  children  went  wrong  and  became  a  snare 


[43] 


The  Book  of  Job 

and  a  menace  to  him.  Predatory  bands  destroyed  his 
crops  and  ravaged  even  among  the  thorn  hedges  of  his 
home.  This  upstart  profane  man  came  to  want. 
God’s  providence  would  never  support  one  who  did 
not  put  his  trust  in  Jehovah.  Job  may  profit  by  this 
example.  After  seeking  to  correct  Job  by  these  three 
instances  from  his  own  knowledge  the  sheik  of  Tema 
comes  out  boldly  with  advice  for  him.  He  reconn 
mends  to  his  friend  that  he  seek  God  and  commit  his 
cause  unto  him — the  great  God  of  nature  who  does 
marvelous  things,  things  past  finding  out.  This  pas¬ 
sage  beginning  with  the  eighth  verse  of  the  fifth  chap¬ 
ter  and  continuing  to  the  end  of  the  chapter  is  made 
up  of  beautiful  poetry.  It  is  a  lyrical  expression  of 
the  nature  religion  of  a  great  man  in  easy  circum¬ 
stances.  The  argument  is  constructed  on  the  assump¬ 
tion  that  God  prospers  those  who  serve  him  and  that 
only  disaster  and  failure  can  be  looked  for  by  those 
who  do  not.  This  speech  of  Eliphaz  therefore  centers 
the  discussion  upon  the  main  theme  of  the  drama ;  the 
question  of  the  cause  of  happiness  and  unhappiness, 
success  and  failure. 

At  the  seventeenth  verse  Eliphaz  changes  from  the 
tone  of  recommendation  to  one  of  comfort  and  hope. 
He  calls  Job’s  attention  to  the  fact  that  his  affliction 
is  for  his  own  good  and  that  there  is  only  one  thing 
required  of  him  to  be  re-established  in  the  splendid 
princely  position  that  he  formerly  held.  This  one 
thing  is  for  him  to  confess  to  God  his  sin,  ask  God’s 
pardon  and  blessing.  If  Job  will  but  make  a  clean 
breast  of  the  matter  he  can  end  his  suffering  and  be 


[44] 


The  First  Cycle  of  Discussion 

again  the  great  sheik  of  Uz.  He  holds  up  to  him  the 
hope  that  all  his  property  shall  be  recovered.  That 
he  will  have  children  who  will  become  great  and  that 
he  shall  at  the  end  of  life  go  down  to  his  grave  full  of 
honors  like  a  shock  of  grain  in  its  season.  This  he 
submits  as  a  matter  that  he  had  searched  out.  If  Job 
will  accept  it  and  profit  by  it  all  will  be  well  with  him. 

Job  —  Chapters  VI,  VII 

Job’s  second  speech  is  an  answer  to  Eliphaz  and 
yet  it  is  significant  that  Job  does  not  answer  the  argu¬ 
ment  of  Eliphaz.  The  thrice  repeated  charge  that 
Job  is  a  sinner,  based  upon  what  Eliphaz  has  seen, 
Job  wholly  ignores.  Only  one  statement  in  the  argu¬ 
ment  of  his  friend  does  Job  reply  to.  This  is  a 
charge  that  he  has  spoken  rashly.  He  does  not 
deny  the  charge,  but  ‘‘Oh,  that  my  vexation  were 
but  weighed”  against  it,  he  proclaims.  He  was 
fully  aware  that  he  had  spoken  rashly,  but  there  is  a 
reason  for  it.  The  arrows  of  the  Almighty  are  in 
him.  If  his  provocation  to  rash  utterance  were  but 
weighed  against  his  statements,  they  would  not 
seem  so  unreasonable.  “Doth  the  wild  ass  bray  when 
he  has  grass?  Or  loweth  the  ox  over  his  fodder?” 
Certainly  not.  When  the  beast  has  plenty  to  eat 
and  is  satisfied  he  keeps  quiet.  It  is  his  distress  that 
makes  him  moan.  So  with  Job. 

At  the  eighth  verse  Job  returns  to  his  former 
plaint  and  prays  that  God  might  give  him  the  desire 
of  his  heart;  that  is,  death.  The  desolation  of  his 
life  comes  upon  him  again  with  overwhelming  force, 


[45] 


The  Book  of  Job 


as  at  his  first  outburst.  Job  still  thinks  sanely  and 
considerately.  He  fears  that  his  agony  and  suffering 
may  drive  him  into  indiscretion  or  blasphemy.  His 
heart  is  right  toward  God  and  he  would  like  to  keep 
it  so.  It  is  the  one  satisfying  thought  he  still  has, 
that  his  integrity  before  God  is  complete.  He  can 
even  exult  in  his  pain  that  he  may  keep  his  favor 
with  God.  He  has  kept  his  word.  He  is  not  sure 
whether  he  can  continue  to  do  so  much  longer  or  not. 
He  fears  his  ability  to  maintain  his  faith.  Therefore 
while  his  heart  is  right  and  his  allegiance  to  God  is 
complete  he  would  like  to  be  removed  from  his 
affliction  and  maintain  his  clear  record  in  the  eyes  of 
Jehovah. 

At  the  fourteenth  verse  Job  takes  Eliphaz  and  his 
companions  sharply  to  task  for  their  attitude.  They 
came  as  friends.  They  found  Job  in  affliction.  Job 
needed  help  and  comfort.  They  have  given  him 
none.  They  have  disappointed  him.  He  reminds 
them  that  to  one  who  is  ready  to  faint  his  friends 
should  show  kindness,  even  if  he  had  forsaken  the 
Almighty.  Instead  of  helping  him  they  have  made 
his  lot  harder.  Job  now  breaks  forth  into  wonder¬ 
fully  picturesque  imagery  in  describing  how  his 
friends  have  disappointed  him.  He  imagines  a  cara¬ 
van  coming  up  across  the  desert  from  the  south. 
They  are  worn  out  with  the  heat  and  toil  of  the 
journey.  They  turn  aside  from  the  beaten  path  to 
go  up  into  a  deep  valley  where  they  expect  to  find 
water  from  the  spring  rains.  But  when  they  come 
there  all  faint  and  overcome  by  heat  and  thirst  they 


[46] 


The  First  Cycle  of  Discussion 

find  everything  dried  up  and  withered.  “They  go 
up  into  the  waste  and  perish.”  So  have  Job’s  com¬ 
forters  been  to  him.  They  dealt  deceitfully  with  him 
as  the  brook.  He  reminds  them  further  that  they 
came  of  their  own  accord.  He  did  not  send  for  them. 
He  did  not  ask  their  ministrations.  When  they  come 
they  find  him  in  distress.  Instead  of  helping  him 
they  make  his  sorrow  all  the  greater.  Job  clearly 
implies  his  lack  of  appreciation  in  such  comfort  as 
this. 

Once  more  he  attacks  his  would-be  friends  when 
he  accuses  them  of  not  being  frank  and  fair.  “You 
have  charged  me  of  rashness  and  of  doing  wrong. 
If  you  know  this  to  be  true  why  do  you  not  teach 
me,”  he  would  say  to  them,  “and  cause  me  to  under¬ 
stand  wherein  I  have  erred.”  If  he  has  been  a 
sinner  he  would  like  to  know  it.  He  invites  them  to 
a  frank  statement  of  his  case.  So  far  he  charges 
that  their  words  have  been  mere  words.  They  have 
seen  in  his  expressions  of  sorrow  only  idle  talk. 
They  have  not  penetrated  to  the  depth  of  his  anguish 
of  soul.  They  are  superficial  and  devoid  of  deep 
and  lasting  friendship.  They  would  even  speculate 
at  his  expense.  He  has  invited  them  to  come  and 
discuss  the  matter  with  him ;  he  assures  them  that  he 
is  able  to  discern  good  from  bad,  and  that  he  will 
deal  with  them  in  an  honest  and  fair  way. 

Beginning  with  the  seventh  chapter  Job  turns 
from  his  “miserable  comforters,”  as  he  elsewhere 
calls  them,  to  inquire  whether  there  is  not  a  principle 
that  governs  the  destiny  of  men  in  this  world.  “Is 


[47] 


The  Book  of  Job 


there  not  a  warfare  of  man  upon  earth,  and  are  not 
his  days  like  the  days  of  an  hireling?”  One’s  destiny 
is  not  wholly  in  his  own  hands.  “As  a  hireling  that 
looketh  for  his  wages,”  so  Job  is  made  to  possess 
months  of  misery  and  wearisome  nights  are 
appointed  unto  him.  His  life  is  a  perpetual  misery, 
dominated  and  overruled  by  a  power  over  which  he 
has  no  control.  Through  the  long  hours  of  the  night 
he  can  find  no  sleep.  His  flesh  heals  up  at  one  place 
and  breaks  out  at  another.  His  skin  is  full  of 
worms  and  his  body  is  black  and  deformed  with 
ulcers.  Nothing  but  bleak  hopelessness  stares  him 
in  the  face.  His  life  is  a  blank,  he  is  unrecognized, 
he  shall  no  more  see  anything  good.  It  is  the  hard 
hand  of  a  relentless  law  that  urges  him  on  into  the 
chilly  waters  of  oblivion.  He  sees  no  end  to  his 
career  except  the  unknown  darkness  of  the  grave. 

In  the  last  section  of  the  chapter  Job  turns  from 
the  thought  of  the  philosophy  of  life  to  the  author 
of  life  itself.  He  can  find  no  justification  in  the  law 
that  is  overruling  his  destiny.  He  feels  himself 
treated  like  a  wild  beast  in  a  cage.  He  is  under  the 
constant  eye  of  a  watchful  Providence.  When  life 
might  be  made  worth  while  destiny  drives  him  into 
another  course.  If  he  has  sinned  why  does  not  God 
deal  frankly  with  him?  Why  must  he  be  set  up  as  a 
target  at  which  the  thunder  bolts  of  God’s  wrath 
are  continually  hurled?  And  if  he  is  a  sinner  why 
does  not  God  provide  a  way  to  pardon  his  sins  and 
reinstate  him  again  in  favor?  This  is  a  bold  arraign¬ 
ment  on  the  part  of  Job.  If  it  were  not  absolutely 

[48] 


The  First  Cycle  of  Discussion 

frank  and  sincere  it  would  amount  to  blasphemy. 
But  it  is  not  this.  Job  with  all  the  manliness  of  an 
upright  heart  and  a  clear  conscience  is  simply  de¬ 
manding  of  Jehovah  a  justification  of  his  course 
with  him. 


Bildad  —  Chapter  YIII 

Bildad  has  been  greatly  exasperated  by  Job’s  pro¬ 
fession  of  innocence.  His  words  are  like  a  mighty 
wind.  There  is  no  doubt  about  it,  Job  is  punished 
for  sin.  God  is  a  just  God.  He  deals  with  men 
according  to  their  deserts.  There  is  no  other  ex¬ 
planation  of  Job’s  terrible  lapse  of  fortune.  This  is 
a  cold  and  hard  philosophy,  but  Bildad  is  incapable 
of  understanding  the  situation  from  any  other  angle. 
He  is  willing  to  concede  that  Job  may  not  have 
sinned  personally,  that  the  sin  may  have  been  com¬ 
mitted  by  his  children.  But  as  head  of  his  family  he 
is  responsible  for  his  children.  Therefore  he  dis¬ 
misses  the  subject  as  if  there  was  nothing  more  to 
say. 

But  to  him  it  is  a  very  easy  matter  for  Job  to 
reinstate  himself  into  God’s  favor.  Bildad  is  so  fully 
intrenched  in  the  current  belief  of  his  time,  that  God 
prospers  people  according  to  their  faithfulness  and 
punishes  them  in  proportion  to  their  sin,  that  he  does 
not  give  even  a  passing  thought  to  the  possibility  of 
any  other  explanation  of  Job’s  present  condition. 
If  J ob  will  but  confess  his  sins,  make  his  supplication 
to  the  Almighty  and  turn  to  him  with  a  loving,  trust¬ 
ful  heart  there  can  be  only  one  result.  God  will 


[49] 


The  Book  of  Job 


accept  him  into  favor  again  and  start  him  once  more 
upon  a  career  of  prosperity  and  happiness.  This  is 
a  comfortable  philosophy  of  life  for  the  well  to  do 
and  prosperous,  but  it  had  no  comfort  for  Job. 

Bildad  is  a  brusque  type  of  man  who  talks  to  the 
point  and  stops  when  he  has  reached  it.  He  is  devoid 
of  tenderness  and  even  his  sympathy  is  cold.  He 
employs  a  laconic  form  of  speech  and  is  dogmatic  in 
tone.  He  has  adopted  as  a  basis  of  his  intellectual 
creed  the  wisdom  of  the  ancients.  He  has  no  respect 
for  modern  opinion  or  for  personal  experience.  He 
applies  to  the  former  age  for  the  source  of  his  wisdom 
and  gives  full  credence  to  what  the  fathers  have 
searched  out.  Anything  that  does  not  have  the 
hoary  appearance  of  antiquity  about  it  is  unworthy 
of  his  consideration. 

But  not  satisfied  with  a  general  statement  of  his 
creed  he  becomes  concrete.  “Can  the  rush  grow 
without  mire?”  he  inquires.  “Can  the  flag  grow 
without  water?”  These  are  axioms  which  no  one 
will  deny.  To  his  mind  they  are  all  conclusive 
proofs.  These  water  grasses  perish  more  quickly 
from  drought  than  other  vegetation.  This  is  a  con¬ 
vincing  illustration  of  Job’s  condition.  The  with¬ 
drawal  of  the  water  from  the  rush  or  the  flag  is 
symbolical  of  God’s  withdrawal  of  his  favor  from 
Job.  Calamities  have  come  upon  him  with  unusual 
severity  and  accumulated  fury  because  he  had  for¬ 
merly  been  the  favored  object  of  God’s  providence 
and  love.  But  since  he  has  turned  his  back  upon 
Jehovah  Job  has  been  overwhelmed  by  the  sudden 


[50] 


The  First  Cycle  of  Discussion 

reversal  of  fortune  just  as  the  rush  immediately  dies 
without  water.  But  this  is  God’s  way  and  Job’s 
lot  is  not  different  than  others  who  had  renounced 
Jehovah.  Bildad  is  undoubtedly  endeavoring  to  give 
Job  comfort.  He  has  blessed  him  once,  if  he  will 
meet  Jehovah’s  demands  He  will  bless  him  again. 

“Behold  God  will  not  cast  away  a  perfect  man,” 
proclaims  our  philosopher,  and  we  will  accept  his 
statement  as  true.  But  what  does  Bildad  mean  by  a 
perfect  man?  His  standard  of  perfection  is  measured 
by  worldly  prosperity  or  the  lack  of  it.  The  perfect 
man  is  the  man  who  succeeds  in  his  worldly  affairs, 
who  amasses  wealth,  honor,  influence,  position. 
According  to  his  philosophy,  these  are  the  gifts  of 
God,  and  the  marks  of  his  favor;  and  all  of  this  is  so 
easy  for  Job  to  attain,  as  Bildad  sees  it.  “If  you 
will  but  return  in  your  allegiance  to  Jehovah,”  he 
would  say  to  Job, 

“He  will  yet  fill  thy  mouth  with  laughter 
And  thy  lips  with  shouting.” 

Bildad  was  a  lavish  promiser,  but  all  of  his  promises 
had  no  comfort  for  our  hero  bowed  under  the  heavy 
hand  of  affliction. 

Job  —  Chapters  IX,  X 

Bildad ’s  speech  had  only  the  effect  of  arousing  Job 
to  greater  remonstrance.  In  fact  he  angered  him. 
1  Of  course,  I  know  that  what  you  say  is  true,  but  how 
can  a  man  be  just  with  such  a  God — one  who  has  taken 
my  property  away,  destroyed  all  my  children  at  one 

[51] 


The  Book  of  Job 


stroke,  and  has  now  made  my  own  life  a  misery  to 
me?  There  is  no  use  trying  to  appear  just  before 
such  a  God.  If  I  should  try  to  reply  to  him  I  could 
not  answer  one  of  his  demands  in  a  thousand.  Of 
course  he  is  wise  and  mighty  but  he  is  also  unjust  and 
tyrannical.  ’ 

Taking  up  again  the  suggestion  of  Bildad,  Job’s 
mind  runs  along  the  line  of  God’s  manifestations  in 
the  world  about  him.  ‘Yes,  he  is  a  great  and  terrible 
God,’  he  would  say.  ‘He  shakes  the  earth  with  the 
earthquake  and  makes  it  tremble.  He  has  spread  out 
the  heavens  and  piled  up  the  waves  of  the  sea.  He 
created  the  Great  Bear,  Orion,  and  the  Pleiades,  and 
the  open  chambers  of  space  in  the  south.  He  has 
done  many  great  and  marvelous  things,  things  that 
we  cannot  understand.  He  passes  by  me  in  his 
majesty  and  I  see  him  not.  I  am  wholly  ignored.  I 
am  nothing  in  his  sight.  He  is  not  a  God  of  mercy, 
but  one  of  cruel  injustice.’ 

The  next  strophe  continues  the  thought  in  much  the 
same  tone.  It  is  the  tone  of  complaint.  God  will  not 
withdraw  his  anger  from  him.  His  treatment  is  un¬ 
just,  and  Job  turns  away  discouraged  and  despondent. 
Although  he  believes  himself  righteous,  he  feels  that 
God  has  withdrawn  himself  and  is  no  longer  willing 
to  hear  him.  He  cannot  get  his  cause  before  Jehovah. 
Even  if  he  could  speak  with  him  God  would  not  give 
him  a  fair  deal.  “If  I  had  called  and  he  had 
answered  me,  yet  would  I  not  believe  he  had  harkened 
unto  my  voice.  For  he  breaketh  me  with  a  tempest 
and  multiplieth  my  wounds  without  cause.  He  would 


[52] 


The  First  Cycle  of  Discussion 


not  suffer  me  to  take  my  breath  but  filleth  me  with 
bitterness.”  In  these  charges  Job  is  treading  danger¬ 
ously  near  the  border  line  of  impiety;  but  we  should 
see  these  expressions  issuing  from  the  bitterness  of  his 
soul  from  which  the  light  of  God’s  dealing  is  com¬ 
pletely  shut  out. 

Job  feels  that  God’s  treatment  of  him  is  not  only 
unjust  but  arbitrary.  He  would  like  to  have  justice 
and  when  he  pleads  with  God  for  just  treatment  he 
thinks  of  him  as  replying,  “Who  will  summon  me  to 
justice  ?”  God  is  too  far  away.  Job  cannot  approach 
him.  Although  he  knows  that  his  heart  is  right  yet 
his  own  mouth  would  condemn  him  in  the  sight  of 
Jehovah.  God  in  his  awful  austerity  would  make 
J ob ’s  own  pious  words  prove  himself  a  sinner  in  God ’s 
sight.  In  this  unjust  treatment  God  is  pursuing  a 
whimsical  course  with  him.  He  destroys  the  perfect 
and  wicked  alike  without  distinction.  Either  God  is 
ruling  with  a  tyrannical  hand,  or  he  has  given  over 
the  government  of  the  world  into  the  perverse  hand 
of  a  wicked  Destiny.  In  desperation  he  cries,  “If 
God  is  not  doing  this,  who  then  is  it?” 

In  the  third  strophe  of  the  ninth  chapter  Job  rises 
to  a  still  higher  strain,  if  possible,  of  denunciation. 
His  life  is  passing  away  like  a  swift  messenger.  He 
knows  the  end  is  approaching.  If  he  resolves  that 
he  will  forget  his  trouble  and  snatch  a  moment  of 
good  cheer,  the  next  instant  he  is  hurled  into  his 
misery  again.  If  he  wTould  wash  his  loathsome  body 
as  white  as  snow,  God  would  plunge  him  back  into 
the  ditch  and  his  own  clothes  would  abhor  him.  God 


[53] 


The  Book  of  Job 


has  withdrawn  himself  out  of  his  reach.  He  can  no 
longer  approach  him.  There  is  no  means  of  commu¬ 
nication  between  them.  Oh,  that  there  might  be  an 
umpire,  and  arbritrator,  who  might  stand  between, 
and  by  placing  one  hand  on  Job  and  the  other  on  God 
bring  them  together  in  such  a  way  that  they  might 
understand  each  other.  Job  implies  in  this  wish  that 
God  does  not  understand  him  and  that  he  cannot 
understand  God’s  dealing  with  him.  “Let  him  take 
away  his  rod  from  me  and  cease  to  make  me  afraid.” 

In  this  desire  for  an  umpire  to  mediate  between 
himself  and  Jehovah  the  drama  rises  to  a  high  point 
in  its  development.  In  essence  this  is  an  anticipation 
of  the  Redeemer  of  the  world  who  shall  mediate  be¬ 
tween  God  and  the  race.  Job  has  in  mind  nothing 
like  our  Savior  who  shall  bring  a  new  plan  of  salva¬ 
tion,  but  his  thought  is  anticipatory  of  such  a  rela¬ 
tionship  between  man  and  his  Creator  as  has  since 
been  established  in  the  mediatorial  office  of  the  Christ. 

In  the  tenth  chapter,  which  closes  Job’s  speech,  he 
drops  into  a  more  subdued  tone.  He  has  almost  ex¬ 
hausted  himself  in  the  terrible  anguish  of  his  question¬ 
ings  and  in  the  turmoil  of  his  soul.  “My  soul  is 
weary  of  my  life,”  he  says.  “I  will  say  unto  God, 
‘Do  not  condemn  me,  show  me  wherefore  thou  con- 
tendest  with  me’.”  His  note  now  becomes  one  of 
inquiry.  “Does  it  seem  good  to  God  that  he  should 
oppress  and  despise  the  work  of  his  own  hand  ?  ’  ’  Does 
he  look  upon  his  handiwork  with  an  eye  of  flesh — the 
narrow,  limited  view  of  a  human  being?  Can  it  be 
that  his  treatment  of  Job  is  on  the  low  plane  of  man 


[54] 


The  First  Cycle  of  Discussion 


to  man?  Tho  God’s  hand  formed  him,  yet  it  seems 
to  be  stretched  out  to  destroy  him;  is  it  the  part  of 
God  to  destroy  his  own  work?  Has  he  no  pleasure 
in  his  own  creation?  God  has  given  him  existence 
and  has  kept  him  alive ;  if  he  is  really  God  he  must 
have  known  that  all  these  afflictions  were  to  come  upon 
him,  but  he  hid  them  from  him;  and  now  his  heavy 
hand  of  affliction  is  laid  upon  him  without  measure 
and  without  warning  and,  as  it  seems  to  Job,  without 
cause.  If  he  were  wicked  he  would  not  refuse  to  suf¬ 
fer,  but  knowing  that  he  is  not,  his  life  is  filled  with 
ignominy  and  affliction.  In  the  midst  of  his  suffer¬ 
ings  God  renews  his  witness  against  him  and  increases 
his  indignation  upon  him.  Surprises,  changes,  and 
warfare  are  his  continual  lot. 

Why  has  God  permitted  him  to  be  born?  If  he 
could  only  have  passed  away  at  his  birth  and  never 
have  been  known,  how  much  better  it  would  have 
been.  This  affliction  cannot  endure  very  long.  His 
days  must  soon  be  at  an  end.  If  God  would  only 
withdraw  his  hand  for  awhile  he  might  yet  have  a 
little  comfort  before  he  takes  his  last  journey.  And 
when  he  looks  to  the  end  of  his  career,  there  is  nothing 
but  the  darkness  of  the  shadow  of  death  to  which  he 
approaches — a  land  as  dark  as  midnight,  the  land  of 
the  shadow  of  death  without  any  order,  and  where 
the  light  is  as  thick  darkness. 

Zophar  —  Chapter  XI 

We  must  think  of  Zophar  as  having  sat  through 
this  prolonged  debate,  his  mind  fully  made  up  as  to 

[55]  . 


The  Book  of  Job 


the  cause  of  Job’s  distress.  As  he  was  doubtless  the 
youngest  of  the  three  visitors,  custom,  for  which  he 
had  great  respect,  would  forbid  him  from  entering 
the  discussion  until  his  seniors  had  expressed  them¬ 
selves.  Consequently  by  the  time  the  discussion  came 
round  to  him  he  was  all  on  edge  with  eagerness  to  have 
his  say.  Job’s  protestations  of  innocence  had  become 
wearisome  to  him,  and  his  prolonged  discussion  of 
his  own  calamities,  together  with  the  harsh  words  he 
had  used  against  God,  grated  rudely  against  the  dog¬ 
matic  nature  of  Zophar.  It  is  little  credit  to  him, 
despite  his  narrow  views,  that  he  could  see  in  all  of 
Job’s  deep  expressions  of  anguish  nothing  but  idle 
bluster.  To  his  way  of  thinking  the  time  was  here 
when  Job  needed  to  be  answered  positively  and 
sharply. 

“Should  thy  boastings  make  men  hold  their  peace? 

And  when  thou  mockest  shall  no  man  make  thee 
ashamed  ?  ’  ’ 

If  Job  could  but  understand  God  and  know  how  he 
estimates  his  conduct  he  would  realize  that  his  punish¬ 
ment  is  not  so  great  as  it  deserves  to  be.  This  is 
harsh  language,  but  it  is  in  keeping  with  the  nature 
of  the  speaker. 

Zophar  takes  Job  to  task  for  his  shortsightedness. 
If  he  knew  more  he  could  understand  God’s  ways  with 
him  better.  “Cans’t  thou  by  searching  find  out  God? 
Cans’t  thou  find  out  the  Almighty  unto  perfection?” 

[56] 


The  First  Cycle  of  Discussion 

God’s  thoughts  are  as  high  as  the  heavens,  deeper 
than  Sheol,  what  can  Job  know  about  them?  Job  has 
been  rash  to  rail  against  God  as  he  has  done.  He 
should  not  construe  his  limited  opinion  into  a  charge 
against  God’s  judgment.  God  knows  all  things.  He 
knows  what  is  good  and  what  is  just.  He  deals  with 
men  according  to  their  deservings.  He  knows  that 
Job  is  false,  therefore  Job  is  reaping  just  what  he 
sowed.  But  for  a  man  to  set  up  his  opinion  against 
the  omnipotence  of  God,  this  is  preposterous.  Vain 
man  is  void  of  understanding.  The  high  thoughts 
and  purposes  of  the  Almighty  are  to  him  as  if  he  were 
born  a  wild  ass’s  colt. 

In  this  cold-blooded  arraignment  Zophar  has  spoken 
some  beautiful  poetry,  and  has  certainly  expressed 
his  thought  in  a  cogent  and  succinct  form.  His  logic 
is  crushing,  and  he  relies  upon  it  with  the  full  weight 
of  his  confidence.  But  he  has  never  thought  of  apply¬ 
ing  it  to  himself.  Would  he,  more  than  Job,  be  able 
to  find  God  by  searching  him  out  ?  Could  he,  mortal 
man  as  he  is,  stand  before  God  uncondemned?  Like 
his  companions,  he  has  a  theory  of  life  that  is  quite 
satisfactory  to  a  man  in  prosperous  circumstances. 
But  it  has  no  comfort  for  the  one  cast  down  by  mis¬ 
fortune. 

Like  his  two  companions  Zophar  closes  his  speech 
with  lavish  promises.  If  Job  will  only  set  his  heart 
aright,  stretch  out  his  hand  toward  God,  put  his  in¬ 
iquity  far  from  him,  surely  God  will  raise  him  up 
again  and  his  life  shall  be  clearer  than  the  noon  day. 

It  is  thus  seen  that  the  three  friends  of  Job  have  all 


[57] 


The  Book  of  Job 


adjudged  his  situation  from  the  same  viewpoint,  and 
they  have  likewise  all  promised  a  speedy  restoration 
of  health  and  fortune  if  Job  will  but  take  the  proper 
steps  to  reinstate  himself  into  God’s  favor.  That  his 
calamity  could  be  due  to  anything  except  sin,  it  is 
impossible  for  them  to  think.  They  have  done  their 
best,  or  their  worst,  to  bring  Job  into  a  position  to 
reenter  God’s  favor.  That  they  have  signally  failed, 
in  this  first  round  of  discussion,  is  too  evident.  They 
have  had  much  to  say  that  has  harrassed  Job’s  soul 
and  exasperated  him  almost  to  fury.  But  not  one  of 
them  has  had  a  word  to  say  that  would  give  a  man 
bowed  under  the  heavy  hand  of  affliction  a  ray  of 
comfort  or  hope.  They  have  not  stood  by  his  side 
as  friends.  They  have  confronted  him  as  judges  and 
critics.  Instead  of  extending  sympathy  and  encour¬ 
agement,  they  have  arraigned  him  as  a  malefactor,  as 
one  who  disobeyed  God  and  seeks  to  defraud  man. 
Although  they  are  philosophers  and  scholars  and 
sages,  men  of  broad  culture  and  ripe  experience,  they 
lack  the  human  touch  that  enables  them  to  bring  com¬ 
fort  to  a  heart  in  its  deep  hour  of  suffering.  Each 
has  tried  in  turn  to  reconcile  Job  with  God,  yet  their 
mistaken  views  and  their  narrow  theories  of  life  have 
prevented  any  one  of  them  from  helping  him  in  his 
distress.  While  they  have  exasperated  him  almost 
beyond  measure,  and  have  caused  him  to  speak  words 
almost  sacrilegious,  yet  Job  in  his  heart  has  not  re¬ 
nounced  God,  and  his  integrity  and  faith  are  still 
unimpaired. 


[58] 


The  First  Cycle  of  Discussion 

Job  —  Chapters  XII  -  XIV 

Job’s  reply  to  Zophar  takes  the  form  of  a  reply 
to  all  three.  He  has  listened  to  their  misdirected 
teaching  until  his  patience  is  well  nigh  exhausted. 
He  has  in  turn  been  surprised,  shocked,  grieved,  dis¬ 
tressed,  confused,  and  exasperated.  They  have 
proven  to  be  anything  but  friends  in  time  of  need. 
They  have  entirely  misjudged  him.  Can  it  be  pos¬ 
sible  that  they  have  conspired  to  break  him  down 
under  this  terrible  avalanche  of  accusation  and  want 
of  feeling?  He  can  stand  it  no  longer.  He  turns 
upon  them  with  his  sharpest  weapon,  satire,  and  he 
uses  it  with  unblunted  edge. 

“No  doubt  that  ye  are  the  people 
And  wisdom  shall  die  with  you,” 

he  begins  with  a  sarcastic  smile,  evidently  feeling 
how  his  words  must  cut  to  the  quick.  In  their  esti¬ 
mation  they  feel  that  they  are  the  embodiment  of  all 
wisdom,  and  that  with  their  departure  wisdom  will 
perish  from  the  earth.  But  he  protests  that  he  has 
understanding  as  well  as  they,  and  he  regards  him¬ 
self  as  in  no  sense  inferior  to  them.  These  dry  saws 
that  they  have  been  harping  on  are  nothing  remark¬ 
able.  Who  is  not  familiar  with  most  of  the  anti¬ 
quated  maxims  they  have  been  rehearsing?  But 
that  kind  of  musty  philosophy  has  very  little  to  do 
with  the  affairs  of  everyday  life.  To  a  man  slipping 
over  the  brink  of  despair  these  cold  formulae  have 
no  message.  He  knows  some  things  from  experience. 


[59] 


The  Book  of  Job 


It  is  not  true  that  those  who  are  most  exemplary 
in  life  succeed  best  in  a  material  way,  and  vice  versa. 
He  has  known  hands  of  robbers  in  the  desert  to 
flourish,  grow  strong  and  prosperous,  and  he  has 
seen  those  that  provoke  God  go  free  from  punish¬ 
ment.  If  these  things  prevail  among  men,  does  not 
the  same  law  hold  among  others  of  God’s  creatures? 
How  about  the  beasts?  Do  not  the  larger  and  fiercer 
live  upon  the  weaker?  Do  not  the  vultures  and  the 
eagles  and  the  hawks  make  the  smaller  birds  their 
prey?  Do  not  the  larger  fishes  eat  the  smaller  ones? 
Does  not  God’s  law  everywhere  show  that  there  is  no 
such  law  in  operation  as  his  accusers  have  been 
proclaiming  ? 

“You  say  that  with  aged  men  is  wisdom,  and  in 
length  of  days  understanding ;  I  say  with  God  is 
wisdom  and  might.”  All  of  this  is  God’s  law.  God 
not  only  knows  but  he  does.  His  laws  are  beyond 
the  ways  of  men.  He  breaketh  down  and  it  can  not 
be  built  again.  The  deceiver  and  the  deceived  are 
his.  He  confutes  people  in  their  own  counsels  and 
makes  fools  of  the  wise.  He  allows  kings  to  reign 
in  power  for  a  time  and  then  overthrows  them  by  his 
mighty  hand.  He  permits  nations  to  rise  into  world 
domination  and  then  raises  up  other  nations  to  bring 
them  into  subjection.  Even  the  boasted  wisdom  of 
men  he  passes  under  the  eclipse  where  the  nations 
for  a  time  grope  as  it  were  in  darkness  and  igno¬ 
rance.  No,  God  does  not  rule  after  the  manner  advo¬ 
cated  by  the  friends,  but  after  a  manner  all  his  own. 

These  things  are  facts.  Job  has  learned  them 


[60] 


The  First  Cycle  of  Discussion 

from  his  own  experience.  He  knows  that  what  he 
says  is  true,  and  the  great  desire  of  his  heart  is  that 
he  might  speak  with  such  a  God  as  this.  He  would 
like  to  reason  the  matter  with  Him ;  and  if  his  com¬ 
forters  would  only  keep  quiet  and  let  him  alone  it 
would  be  greatly  to  their  credit.  They  are  but 
forgers  of  lies  and  physicians  of  no  value.  God  will 
certainly  reprove  them,  for  their  course  is  a  dis¬ 
honor  to  him. 

“Hold  your  peace/’  he  says  to  them,  “let  me 
alone  that  I  may  speak,  and  let  come  on  me  what 
will.”  God  may  slay  him,  he  does  not  know.  He 
no  longer  hopes  to  appease  the  wrath  of  the  Al¬ 
mighty,  but  he  will  maintain  his  integrity  and  his 
faith  in  him.  God  refuses  to  answer  him  or  to  mani¬ 
fest  himself  to  him,  yet  Job  is  willing  to  think  that, 
however  it  may  be,  God’s  ways  are  right,  and  that 
the  only  course  for  him  to  pursue  is  to  maintain  his 
confidence  in  him.  There  is  also  this  satisfaction, 
that  a  godless  man  shall  not  come  into  Jehovah’s 
presence.  It  would  therefore  be  folly  for  him  now 
to  give  way  and  renounce  God  when  by  so  doing 
he  would  cut  off  further  communication  with  his 
Lord. 

"With  this  thought  in  mind  our  hero  seems  to 
pause  and  take  a  new  inventory  of  his  life,  and 
after  a  careful  introspection  and  thorough  heart 
searching  he  breaks  forth  with  renewed  confidence, 

“Behold  now  I  have  set  my  cause  in  order, 

I  know  that  I  am  righteous.” 


[61] 


The  Book  of  Job 


Even  in  his  hopeless  state  Job  seems  now  to  have  no 
desire  for  death.  He  is  sure  that  the  integrity  of  his 
heart  is  right,  that  his  life  has  been  exemplary ;  and 
with  abounding  faith,  that  somehow,  sometime  God 
will  vindicate  him.  In  this  assurance  he  clings  to 
his  integrity  with  renewed  zeal. 

If  God  would  but  vouchsafe  to  him  two  things  he 
could  renew  his  courage  to  try.  If  he  would  remove 
his  heavy  hand  of  affliction  and  the  terror  that  comes 
from  it,  and  then  would  speak  to  him,  how  glad  he 
would  be  to  answer  and  get  into  communication  with 
him.  Or  if  God  would  only  give  him  the  permission 
to  speak  with  him  and  would  answer  him  when  he 
speaks,  then  he  might  receive  some  satisfaction.  He 
might  talk  to  God  about  his  sins,  he  might  receive 
some  information  about  his  transgressions. 

In  this  Job  is  referring  to  the  common  failures 
incident  to  human  life,  and  is  very  willing  to  admit 
that  he  has  made  many  mistakes  in  his  life,  mistakes 
of  ignorance,  mistakes  of  weakness,  such  as  every¬ 
one  makes.  He  is  not  now  thinking  about  the  domi¬ 
nant  moral  purpose  of  his  life.  This  he  knows  to  be 
true.  He  has  never  purposely  or  knowingly  violated 
God’s  will.  His  integrity  is  still  complete.  It  is 
from  this  angle  that  he  can  not  understand  the  heavy 
hand  of  affliction  that  has  been  upon  him.  He  is  like 
a  prisoner  in  the  stocks,  or  like  a  garment  that  is 
moth-eaten.  His  life  counts  for  nothing. 

In  this  dejected  mood  Job  seems  to  pause  for  a 
moment  and  then  breaks  forth  in  a  tyrical  strain, 


[62] 


The  First  Cycle  of  Discussion 

‘‘Man  that  is  born  of  a  woman, 

Is  of  few  days,  and  full  of  trouble. 

He  cometh  forth  like  a  flower  and  is  cut  down 
He  fleeth  also  as  a  shadow  and  continueth  not.” 

His  lot  is  the  common  lot  of  mankind.  As  a  mortal 
he  is  subject  to  the  limitations  of  mortality.  How 
can  a  human  being  be  perfect?  Who  can  bring  a 
clean  thing  out  of  an  unclean  thing?  not  one.  With 
a  tree  the  case  is  different.  A  tree  may  be  cut  down, 
but  its  root  remaining  in  the  earth  will  send  forth 
living  branches.  But  a  man  dies  and  his  body  is 
laid  in  the  grave,  and  where  is  he  ?  Even  more  than 
a  tree  he  disappears  from  view  and  is  lost  in  the 
mysteries  which  belong  to  God  alone. 

Job  closes  his  sorrowful  speech  with  a  wish  that 
God  might  hide  him  in  Sheol,  the  grave,  which 
according  to  the  belief  of  the  time  was  a  place  of 
mere  existence,  not  life,  not  extinction.  If  God 
would  hide  him  away  in  Sheol  where  he  might  wait 
until  his  release  should  come,  sometime  in  the  vague 
indefinite  future,  he  does  not  know,  he  would  wait 
patiently  until  God  should  call,  and  then  he  would 
answer  him.  As  the  mountains  gradually  are  worn 
down  by  the  elements  and  the  rock  is  consumed  by 
the  slow  process  of  disintegration,  so  God  is  wearing 
out  his  life  under  the  continual  hand  of  affliction. 

So  the  first  act  of  the  drama  closes  with  a  tone  of 
profound  sorrow.  Job’s  life  has  been  caught  up  in 
the  whirlpool  of  God’s  wrath  and  is  being  cast  he 
knows  not  where.  If  he  could  only  get  away  from 


[63] 


The  Book  of  Job 


the  terrible  suffering,  could  spend  long  ages  in  a 
state  of  semi-consciousness,  to  be  awakened  at  last 
by  the  glad  call  of  bis  Master,  what  a  relief  this 
would  be.  But  in  all  these  terrible  experiences  he 
is  holding  on  tenaciously  to  his  faith  and  keeps  his 
heart  and  his  fidelity  intact. 


[04] 


ACT  II 


The  Second  Cycle  of  Discussion 

(Chapters  XV -XXI) 

THE  FIRST  round  of  debate  has  made  clear 
several  things.  The  three  friends  have  taken 
their  stand  on  the  old  theology,  Eliphaz  relying 
upon  the  observations  of  himself  and  others,  while 
his  companions  rest  their  conclusions  on  the  philoso¬ 
phies  and  wisdom  of  the  ancients.  Against  this 
heartless  creed  Job  protests  with  all  the  vehemence 
of  his  nature.  Reasoning  from  the  facts  of  life  and 
nature,  and  appealing  to  human  experience,  he 
frankly  opposes  their  contentions  and  upholds  the 
omniscience  and  omnipotence  of  divine  Majesty.  The 
friends  have  likewise  all  traced  J ob ’s  affliction  to  the 
same  cause  and  have  prescribed  the  same  remedy. 
Repentance  and  confession  on  his  part  will  speedily 
open  the  windows  of  heaven  and  bring  a  full  shower 
of  blessings.  But  this  is  now  to  change.  Job’s  per¬ 
sistence  in  maintaining  his  integrity  and  his  faith 
drives  them  to  shelter  behind  the  bulwarks  of  their 
dogmatic  creed,  so  that  they  never  again  revert  to 
their  former  assurance  of  restoration  and  favor. 

The  second  cycle  therefore  resumes  the  discussion 
on  the  original  lines,  with  this  exception.  The  creed 
of  the  friends  has  not  changed  except  that  it  has 


[65] 


The  Book  of  Job 


been  narrowed  in  scope  and  intensified.  They  now 
bend  all  of  their  energies  to  convict  Job  of  sin  and 
to  wring  from  him  a  confession  of  guilt.  Job  has 
put  a  new  weapon  into  their  hands,  the  keen-edged 
tool  of  irony,  which  they  now  turn  upon  him  with 
telling  effect.  The  three  speak  again  in  the  same 
order  as  before,  Job  replying  to  each  in  turn. 

Eliphaz  —  Chapter  XV 

In  beginning  his  second  speech  Eliphaz  gives  vent 
to  the  feelings  which  have  filled  his  breast  as  he  sat 
through  the  later  discussion.  He  taunts  Job  with 
pretentions  of  being  a  wise  man.  “Should  a  wise 
man  make  answer  with  vain  knowledge  and  fill  him¬ 
self  with  the  east  wind?  Should  he  reason  with 
unprofitable  talk,  or  with  speeches  wherewith  he 
can  do  no  good?”  It  is  evident  that  all  the  anguish 
of  Job’s  soul  has  had  no  effect  upon  Eliphaz.  His 
heart  has  been  untouched.  He  has  not  a  spark  of 
sympathy  for  his  friend.  His  attitude  is  even  more 
unyielding  than  before.  He  is  pursuing  the  decrees 
of  a  relentless  philosophy  which  blinds  him  to  all  the 
finer  attributes  of  life.  He  washes  his  hands  of 
having  anything  further  to  do  with  giving  encour¬ 
agement  to  such  a  wretched  sinner.  He  has  no  word 
of  comfort  or  kindness,  no  promise  of  restoration, 
no  hope  to  offer.  In  his  opinion  Job  has  become 
reckless,  he  has  pursued  a  rash  course ;  his  impiety 
has  even  made  him  fearless  before  God,  so  that  he 
can  no  longer  approach  his  Maker  with  sincerity 
and  a  devoted  heart.  This  first  paragraph  of  the 


[66] 


The  Second  Cycle  of  Discussion 

Temanite’s  reply  is  full  of  cutting  satire  and  has 
only  one  purpose,  to  bring  Job  to  a  confession  of  his 
guilt. 

Changing  his  tone  Eliphaz  launches  out  into  a 
discussion  which  he  has  borrowed  from  Bildad,  in 
which  he  reproaches  Job  for  his  lack  of  knowledge. 
“Art  thou  the  first  man  that  was  born?”  he  inquires, 
“or  wast  thou  brought  forth  before  the  hills?”  im¬ 
plying  that  Job’s  reasoning  from  experience  and 
observation  signifies  nothing  in  comparison  with  the 
ancient  culture  to  which  he  and  his  friends  have 
appealed.  “With  us  are  both  gray-headed  and  the 
very  aged  men,”  he  declares,  “much  older  than  thy 
father.”  This  is  conclusive  argument  in  the  eyes  of 
Eliphaz.  The  farther  back  he  can  pursue  the  stream 
of  wisdom,  the  nearer  he  can  approach  its  fountain 
head,  the  greater  will  be  his  acquisition  of  truth. 

In  the  eleventh  verse  Eliphaz  ventures  a  dangerous 
suggestion:  “Are  the  consolations  of  God  too  small 
for  thee?”  he  asks.  This  consolation  is  evidently  the 
words  of  himself  and  his  friends.  In  all  sincerity  he 
believes  that  they  have  been  doling  out  to  Job  the 
veritable  wisdom  of  Jehovah  himself.  But  how  far 
from  the  truth  he  is  we  shall  discover  later  on  when 
it  becomes  necessary  for  Job  to  intercede  in  behalf 
of  his  friends  that  God  may  not  wholly  repudiate 
them  because  of  their  failure  to  witness  for  him. 
This  touch  is  doubly  significant  as  indicating  how 
thoroughly  the  friends  believe  in  the  righteousness 
of  their  course,  and  at  the  same  time  how  far  their 
philosophy  has  led  them  from  the  truth. 


[67] 


The  Book  of  Job 


Taking  up  a  suggestion  from  Job’s  last  speech  in 
regard  to  the  mistakes  in  his  life,  Eliphaz  turns  upon 
him  his  own  weapons,  as  much  as  to  say,  ‘Being  a 
man,  you  admit  the  frailties  common  to  human 
nature.  You  know  that  you  are  imperfect  and  liable 
to  the  weaknesses  incident  to  mortality,  and  yet  you 
proclaim  your  innocence.  How  can  one  that  is 
abominable  and  corrupt,  a  man  that  drinketh  iniquity 
like  water,  maintain  that  his  life  is  right  in  the  sight 
of  a  perfect  God?’  This  itself  is  enough  to  condemn 
Job. 

In  the  last  section  of  his  speech,  Eliphaz  reverts 
to  his  former  position  of  arguing  from  what  he  has 
seen  and  what  the  wise  men  have  told  him.  In  sub¬ 
stance  his  discussion  is  not  different  from  what  he 
employed  in  his  first  speech.  It  is  the  history  of  a 
wicked  man  who  “travaileth  with  pain  all  his  days.” 
His  conscience  pricks  him  and  his  course  in  life  is 
simply  a  round  of  buffets  and  injuries  received  from 
striking  himself  against  the  hard  places  of  the  world. 
If  he  prospers  for  a  time  disasters  will  come  and  sweep 
away  his  ill  gotten  gain.  His  associations  are  fruit¬ 
less  and  lead  to  discredit  and  ill  favor.  His  life 
goes  down  in  the  general  wreck  and  turmoil  of 
godless  living,  unhonored  and  unsung. 

Job  —  Chapters  XYI,  XYII 

The  sage  of  Tema  had  spoken  learnedly  and  with 
fine  rhetorical  flourishes,  but  his  heartless  message 
found  no  responsive  chord  in  the  heart  of  suffering 
Job.  “Miserable  comfort”  is  derived  from  such  a 


[68] 


The  Second  Cycle  of  Discussion 

message.  The  patient  sufferer  has  heard  many  such 
things,  and  it  is  the  deep  wish  of  his  heart  that  vain 
words  like  these  might  have  an  end.  It  is  no  mark 
of  wisdom  or  distinction  to  utter  such  dogmas.  “I 
also  could  speak  as  ye  do.  If  your  soul  were  in  my 
soul’s  stead,  I  could  join  words  together  against  you 
and  shake  my  head  at  you.”  What  is  easier  than 
such  mockery.  But  no,  J ob  would  not  afflict  a  friend 
in  this  way.  If  one  of  his  companions  were  in  his 
place  and  he  should  go  as  a  friend  to  bring  him 
comfort,  he  would  speak  encouraging  words  and 
would  endeavor  to  relieve  the  suffering.  He  would 
try  to  be  a  friend  in  deed  and  not  only  in  appearance. 

Turning  from  the  men,  his  thought  reverts  again 
to  himself,  and  in  the  discussion  that  follows  we  see 
Job  in  a  worse  plight  than  he  has  yet  appeared.  As 
he  looks  down  over  his  loathsome  body  he  finds  it 
withered  and  emaciated.  His  flesh  has  fallen  away. 
His  skin  is  black  and  putrid.  He  is  become  a  laugh¬ 
ing  stock.  His  former  neighbors  and  friends  look 
upon  him  as  an  object  of  divine  disfavor.  They  stare 
at  him  with  open  mouths,  and  reproachfully  smite 
him  upon  the  cheek.  God  has  abandoned  him  and 
delivered  him  to  the  ungodly. 

At  this  juncture  Job  seems  to  pause  for  a  moment. 
After  reflecting  upon  his  former  career,  the  days  of 
his  prosperity  loom  up  before  him.  But  it  is  only  a 
flash,  and  he  reverts  to  his  sad  brooding  again.  “I 
was  at  ease,”  he  meditates,  “and  he  brake  me 
asunder.  Yea,  he  hath  taken  me  by  the  neck  and 
dashed  me  to  pieces.”  He  employs  figure  after  figure 

[69] 


The  Book  of  Job 


to  express  how  the  wrath  of  God  has  been  visited 
upon  him.  God’s  arrows  have  pierced  him  from  all 
sides.  His  vengeance  like  a  giant  has  overwhelmed 
him.  He  has  implored  Jehovah  from  the  depth  of 
his  soul  and  yet  his  prayers  are  unheeded. 

Job’s  condition  is  rapidly  changing  for  the  worse. 
In  addition  to  his  emaciated  physical  condition,  his 
spiritual  nature  is  also  breaking  down.  For  the  first 
time  in  all  the  story  we  find  him  shedding  tears. 
“My  face  is  red  with  weeping,”  he  confesses.  The 
brave  courage  of  the  man  is  giving  away.  But  phys¬ 
ically  and  mentally  exhausted,  he  yet  clings  with  a 
clear  faith  to  his  God.  As  if  searching  the  inmost 
recesses  of  his  soul  for  cause  of  Divine  disfavor,  and 
finding  none,  he  sinks  prostrate  before  a  bewildering 
Providence  whose  mysteries  he  can  not  penetrate. 
And  almost  unconsciously  he  mutters  forth  the 
simple  intuition  of  his  heart, 

‘  ‘  On  my  eyelids  is  the  shadow  of  death ; 

Although  there  is  no  violence  in  my  hands, 

And  my  prayer  is  pure.” 

Another  pause,  and  Job  rouses  himself  from  the 
gloom  that  threatened  to  overwhelm  him.  He  has 
formerly  prayed  for  death,  but  now  he  calls  for  the 
earth  not  to  hide  him  away  under  the  reproaches 
heaped  upon  him.  He  has  pled  in  vain  with  men  and 
has  sought  to  establish  his  righteousness  in  their 
eyes.  He  has  received  only  scoffs,  rebuffs  and 
mockery  in  return.  Now  with  one  bold  stroke  for 

[70] 


\ 


The  Second  Cycle  of  Discussion 

vindication  he  appeals  his  cause  to  God.  “Even  now 
behold  my  witness  is  in  heaven,  and  he  that  vouches 
for  me  is  on  high.”  He  knows  that  in  the  records  of 
heaven  his  cause  must  be  vindicated.  Men  may  scoff 
at  him  and  mock  him  and  cause  him  to  shed  bitter 
tears  and  wring  his  soul  in  anguish,  as  they  had 
done,  but  before  God  he  knows  his  record  is  clean. 
The  suddenness  and  vigor  with  which  he  rallies,  in 
his  effort  to  find  justification  at  God’s  hand,  almost 
surprises  us. 

If  God  would  only  give  him  some  assurance,  some 
token  that  he  has  not  wholly  withdrawn  himself,  how 
it  would  cheer  and  encourage  his  drooping  spirits. 

“Give  now  a  pledge,  be  surety  now  for  me  with  thy¬ 
self; 

Who  is  there  that  will  strike  hands  with  me?” 

The  poor  man’s  heart  is  desolate.  For  oh,  so  long,  he 
has  not  had  a  friend  to  give  him  a  word  of  comfort, 
and  God  seems  to  have  abandoned  him  in  his  cold 
isolation.  His  heart  so  yearns  for  friendship  and 
sympathy  that  he  thinks  of  God  as  a  personal  Friend, 
one  who  could  give  him  a  hearty  handshake,  and  the 
kind  of  comfort  that  his  soul  needs.  It  is  impossible 
that  he  can  receive  this  comfort  from  those  who  have 
come  to  comfort  him,  for  God  has  hid  from  their 
heart  understanding.  Their  hearts  are  calloused  to 
his  real  condition.  In  their  complete  failure  to  con¬ 
tribute  to  his  comfort,  Job  feels  that  God  will  cer¬ 
tainly  punish  them  because  they  have  not  been 


[71] 


The  Book  of  Job 


friends.  They  have  even  been  a  temptation  to  him 
to  renounce  God  and  therefore  can  not  escape  the 
just  retribution  of  a  just  and  loving  Father. 

But  Job  can  not  long  keep  his  thought  off  himself. 
Again  he  turns  to  his  sad  lot.  His  heart  is  crushed 
by  the  cruel  treatment  he  receives  from  those  who 
had  once  been  his  friends.  He  has  become  a  byword 
and  a  reproach  among  his  own  people.  They  spit 
in  his  face  and  his  eyes  are  swollen  with  grief.  His 
cheeks  are  sunken  and  his  limbs  are  mere  shadows. 
Upright  men  are  astonished  at  his  treatment.  How 
his  heart  yearns  for  friendship,  but  these  comforters 
of  his,  how  completely  has  every  human  trait  van¬ 
ished  from  their  hearts.  They  are  like  vultures 
preying  upon  the  vitals  of  a  friend. 

If  he  could  only  be  rid  of  them.  “Come  on  now, 
all  of  you,”  he  says  to  them,  “let  me  bid  you  fare¬ 
well,  I  know  I  shall  not  find  a  wise  man  among  you.” 
If  they  would  only  depart  and  leave  him  alone  he 
could  bear  his  grief  so  much  the  easier.  All  the  plans 
of  his  life  have  miscarried.  His  purposes  have  been 
thwarted.  Even  the  very  thoughts  of  his  heart  have 
been  turned  awry.  And  again  in  the  gloom  that 
envelopes  him  he  can  see  nothing  but  the  dark  and 
lonely  grave  to  which  he  sees  himself  hastening. 

Bildad  —  Chapter  XVIII 

Bildad  enters  the  discussion  again  even  more  blunt¬ 
ly  and  abruptly  than  before.  He  reproaches  Job  for 
hunting  for  words  and  asks  him  to  consider  the  folly 
of  his  course;  after  this  he  will  teach  him  what  he 


[72] 


The  Second  Cycle  of  Discussion 


should  know.  Then  wholly  misrepresenting  Job’s  in¬ 
tentions,  he  construes  his  language  to  make  Job  call 
him  and  his  friends  names.  “  Wherefore  are  we 
counted  as  beasts?”  he  demands,  “why  are  we  be¬ 
come  unclean  in  your  sight?”  Then  with  rasping 
sarcasm  he  demands,  “Shall  the  earth  be  forsaken 
for  thee  or  shall  the  rock  be  removed  out  of  its  place  ?  ’  ’ 
A  heart  of  stone  he  must  have  had,  who  could  sit  under 
the  heart-rending  entreaties  of  Job  and  not  be  touched 
by  the  terrible  anguish  of  his  soul. 

But  Bildad  has  no  word  of  comfort  and  no  new 
message ;  he  has  narrowed  his  field  of  vision,  and  re¬ 
fuses  a  word  of  promise  or  hope  or  encouragement. 
In  fact  he  can  scarcely  be  polite  in  his  second  appear¬ 
ance.  He  has  concentrated  his  message  to  a  deter¬ 
mined  effort  of  scourging  out  of  Job  a  confession  of 
sin ;  and  with  unrelenting  severity  he  begins  a  delinea¬ 
tion  of  the  career  of  a  godless  man.  It  will  be  noticed 
that  he  speaks  in  general  terms,  but  every  turn  of  his 
thought  is  so  directed  as  to  pierce  the  tender  flesh  of 
his  suffering  victim. 

“Yea,  the  light  of  the  wicked  shall  be  put  out, 
And  the  spark  of  his  fire  shall  not  shine. 

The  light  shall  be  dark  in  his  tent, 

And  the  lamp  above  him  shall  be  put  out.” 

He  proceeds  then  to  enumerate  a  series  of  snares 
that  seem  to  be  set  about  the  world  to  entrap  the  pro¬ 
fane  man.  He  speaks  of  the  net  which  is  set  for  his 
feet,  and  the  toils  and  the  gin  and  the  snare  that  lay 

[73] 


The  Book  of  Job 


hold  upon  him,  the  noose  and  the  trap  that  lurk  for 
him  in  the  way.  As  Bildad  sees  it  all  nature  conspires 
against  the  godless  man,  and  not  only  are  these  pit- 
falls  to  be  met  in  his  physical  life,  but 

“  Terrors  shall  make  him  afraid  on  every  side, 
And  shall  chase  him  at  his  heels. 

His  strength  shall  be  hunger-bitten, 

And  calamity  shall  be  ready  at  his  side.” 

But  this  is  not  enough.  Bildad  goes  on  to  describe 
the  physical  suffering  of  the  godless  man: 

‘  ‘  The  bars  of  his  skin  shall  be  devoured 
Yea,  the  first  born  of  death  shall  devour  his  mem¬ 
bers.  ’  * 

Unquestionably  Bildad  is  here  referring  to  the  very 
disease  from  which  Job  is  suffering.  The  leprosy  has 
broken  the  bars  of  his  skin,  and  the  first  born  of  death, 
the  most  terrible  disease  known  to  human  experience, 
is  upon  his  friend.  Yet  Bildad  can  taunt  him  in  this 
cold  blooded  fashion  without  a  tremor  or  a  spark  of 
remorse. 

“lie  shall  be  rooted  out  of  his  tent  ^wherein  he  trust- 
eth; 

And  he  shall  be  brought  to  the  king  of  terrors. 

There  shall  dwell  in  his  tent  that  which  is  none  of 
his : 

Brimstone  shall  be  scattered  upon  his  habitation.” 

But  the  unrelenting  man  has  still  not  finished  his 

[74] 


The  Second  Cycle  of  Discussion 

say.  As  tho  it  were  not  enough  to  drive  the  soul  of 
his  suffering  friend  into  paroxysms  of  agony,  he  must 
yet  hold  up  before  him  the  fact  that  not  only  is  he 
made  a  scourge  and  a  laughing  stock  but  that  there 
is  no  promise  for  his  posterity.  His  line  of  descent 
shall  be  destroyed  root  and  branch,  and  his  very  re¬ 
membrance  shall  perish  from  the  earth.  Not  even 
his  name  will  be  perpetuated. 

“He  shall  be  driven  from  light  into  darkness, 

And  chased  out  of  the  world. 

He  shall  have  neither  son  nor  son’s  son  among  his 
people, 

Nor  any  remaining  where  he  sojourned. 

They  that  come  after  shall  be  astonished  at  his  day, 

As  they  that  went  before  were  affrighted.  ’  ’ 

This  is  the  most  unkindest  cut  of  all.  Bildad  seems 
to  pronounce  these  harsh  words  with  keen  relish.  He 
has  pursued  Job  with  a  stubborn  doggedness  that 
knows  no  letting  up.  It  seems  to  be  a  satisfaction 
to  him  to  be  able  to  declare  at  the  end  of  this  tirade, 
“Surely  such  are  the  dwellings  of  the  unrighteous, 
and  this  is  the  place  of  him  that  knoweth  not  God.” 

Job  —  Chapter  XIX 

To  the  poor  man  bowed  in  grief  these  words  were 
almost  unendurable.  “How  long  will  ye  vex  my 
soul,”  he  inquires,  “and  break  me  in  pieces  with 
words?  These  ten  times  have  ye  reproached  me.  Ye 
are  not  ashamed  that  ye  deal  hardly  with  me.”  If 


[75] 


The  Book  of  Job 


it  should  even  be  true  that  Job  has  erred  he  will  have 
to  endure  the  consequences  himself.  Why  do  men 
need  to  pursue  him  with  unmitigated  severity  and 
reproach  him  for  an  offence  against  God?  Let  them 
know  that  God  has  brought  this  affliction  and  not  they. 
God  does  not  need  their  assistance  in  humiliating  him. 
Their  continual  harrassing  is  therefore  uncalled  for 
and  they  have  given  themselves  to  a  task  beyond  their 
province.  God  can  look  out  for  his  own  affairs  and 
they  will  do  well  to  know  this  and  let  him  alone. 

Dismissing  the  men  with  this  curt  answer,  his 
wretchedness  brings  him  to  meditating  again  upon 
himself.  How  long  has  he  cried  out  against  the 
wrongs  heaped  upon  him  and  no  one  has  heard.  He 
has  sought  help  from  God  and  men  but  no  one  has 
vouchsafed  for  him  what  was  justly  his.  He  feels 
that  he  is  like  a  caged  animal,  hedged  around  so  that 
he  can  not  advance.  His  way  is  made  dark,  he  can 
not  be  sure  whither  he  would  go.  Prom  a  flourishing, 
happy,  prosperous  state  he  has  been  humbled  in  the 
dust.  With  all  the  integrity  of  his  heart  he  has  tried 
to  worship  Jehovah  and  him  only.  But  God  has 
counted  him  as  one  of  his  adversaries  and  has  kindled 
his  wrath  against  him.  He  feels  like  a  besieged  city 
where  hostile  forces  are  collected  on  every  side  and 
strong  bulwarks  are  thrown  up  against  him. 

But  this  is  not  the  worst.  His  comforters  have 
proved  themselves  incapable  of  understanding  his  con¬ 
dition  and  he  has  long  ago  rejected  their  proffered 
help.  Yet  he  has  had  true  friends  in  his  home.  But 
now  all  this  is  changed. 


[76] 


The  Second  Cycle  of  Discussion 

1 1  He  hath  put  my  brethren  far  from  me, 

And  mine  acquaintance  are  wholly  estranged  from 
me. 

My  kinfolk  have  failed, 

And  my  familiar  friends  have  forgotten  me. 

They  that  dwell  in  my  house  and  my  maids  count  me 
for  a  stranger : 

I  am  an  alien  in  their  sight. 

I  call  unto  my  servant  and  he  giveth  me  no  answer, 
Tho  I  entreat  him  with  my  mouth. 

My  breath  is  strange  to  my  wife, 

And  my  supplication  to  the  children  of  mine  own 
mother. 

Even  young  children  despise  me; 

If  I  arise,  they  speak  against  me. 

All  my  familiar  friends  abhor  me, 

And  they  whom  I  loved  are  turned  against  me.” 

This  is  a  picture  of  moral  perversity  almost  past 
belief.  If  such  cruel  indifference  ever  could  have  ex¬ 
isted  in  Oriental  society  it  must  have  represented  a 
state  of  civilization  which  is  happily  past.  But  the 
picture  may  be  heightened  for  the  sake  of  dramatic 
effect.  It  represents  the  lowest  stage  to  which  Job 
is  brought.  His  sufferings  now  extend  far  beyond 
the  physical.  The  shame  and  disgrace  heaped  upon 
the  once  honored  sheik  of  Uz  by  his  own  kindred  and 
members  of  his  own  household — this  is  even  worse 
than  physical  suffering.  And  then  to  be  dogged  day 
after  day,  week  after  week,  by  those  who  profess  to  be 
his  friends  in  an  unyielding  effort  to  make  him  confess 

[77] 


The  Book  of  Job 


wrongs  which  he  never  did,  all  this  is  too  much  to 
bear.  Under  such  treatment  his  physical  frame  has 
reduced  to  skin  and  bones,  and  he  has  escaped  with 
his  life  only  by  the  skin  of  his  teeth,  which  is  about 
the  least  thing  he  can  think  of.  Why  will  his  pro¬ 
fessed  friends  not  have  mercy  upon  him?  Is  not 
God’s  punishment  enough?  Do  they  feel  that  they 
must  take  God’s  place  in  scourging  him?  Is  God’s 
hand  short  in  doing  that  which  he  wills?  Have  his 
sufferings  not  yet  sufficed  to  satiate  their  appetite  for 
his  very  life?  “Oh,  have  pity  upon  me,  have  pity 
upon  me,  ye  my  friends.  ’  ’ 

Job  is  almost  exhausted.  He  is  brought  to  the 
brink  of  despair.  He  has  recently  had  much  to  say 
to  his  friends  and  about  his  friends.  He  has  made 
appeal  after  appeal  to  them  for  mercy  and  considera¬ 
tion.  He  has  tested  to  the  limit  the  chances  of  receiv¬ 
ing  relief  at  their  hands.  There  is  only  one  other 
thing  left  for  Job  to  do.  He  must  look  beyond  human 
agencies  for  succor.  The  first  thing  that  occurs  to 
him  is  to  write  the  record  of  his  sufferings  in  a  book 
and  circulate  it  to  all  the  world.  He  can  not  go  down 
to  the  grave  under  such  a  load  of  ignominy  and  shame. 
He  must  vindicate  himself.  If  the  record  of  his  mis¬ 
fortunes  could  be  stored  up  in  the  libraries  of  the 
country,  where  succeeding  generations  could  learn  the 
truth  about  his  sufferings,  this  might  be  a  means  of 
preserving  to  posterity  the  true  account  of  his  life. 
But  a  moment’s  reflection  convinces  him  that,  after 
all,  books  are  perishable  things,  and  in  the  course  of 
time  this  record  might  be  wholly  lost.  There  must 


[78] 


The  Second  Cycle  of  Discussion 

be  a  better  way  to  vindicate  the  truth  of  his  career. 

He  remembers  how  kings  and  rulers  have  some¬ 
times  left  the  records  of  their  achievements  by  in¬ 
scribing  them  in  stone.  He  thinks  of  the  great  bald 
cliff  along  some  ravine,  not  far  from  his  home,  where 
the  caravans  of  Tema  pass  in  their  journey  to  Damas¬ 
cus.  He  will  have  the  whole  face  of  this  rock  smoothed 
down,  and  with  instruments  of  iron  he  will  have  the 
record  of  his  life  chiseled  upon  it  for  the  edification 
of  all  who  pass.  This  will  be  more  enduring  than 
books,  and  through  the  ages  men  can  come  and  learn 
the  facts  about  the  sufferings  of  Job.  At  first  this 
seems  like  an  enticing  plan.  The  sheik  of  Uz  will 
yet  be  vindicated.  The  world  must  know  the  truth. 

By  this  method  kings  have  implored  the  gods  for  a 
vindication  of  their  great  works  in  the  world.  Job  is 
gradually  rising  step  by  step  from  things  purely 
human  to  things  divine.  But  even  an  inscription  in 
the  rock  will  in  time  weather  away  and  be  lost.  In 
Job’s  mounting  thought  there  is  still  something  better 
than  this.  In  his  former  speech  he  had  declared, 

1  ‘  Behold  my  witness  is  in  heaven,  and  he  that  vouches 
for  me  is  on  high.  ’  ’  He  can  now  mount  a  stage  higher 
and  in  a  bold  venture  of  faith  declare, 

“As  for  me  I  know  that  my  Redeemer  liveth, 

And  at  last  he  will  stand  up  upon  the  earth : 

And  after  my  skin,  even  this  body,  is  destroyed, 
Then  without  my  flesh  shall  I  see  God; 

Whom  I,  even  I,  shall  see  for  myself, 

And  mine  eyes  shall  behold  and  not  as  a  stranger.” 


[79] 


The  Book  of  Job 


This  is  the  strongest  statement  of  faith  in  the  im¬ 
mortality  of  the  soul  perhaps  that  has  come  down  to 
us  from  the  patriarchal  age.  And  Job  was  brought 
to  this  sublime  faith  by  his  own  experience.  All  his 
life  he  had  lived  true  to  God.  It  was  unthinkable 
to  him  that  God’s  ways  with  his  creatures  should  not 
find  vindication  in  a  course  of  just  and  righteous  deal¬ 
ing.  And  yet  experience  and  observation  had  taught 
him  that  there  is  no  such  rigorous  law  in  operation 
as  that  which  the  sages  of  Tema,  Shuah,  and  Naamah 
had  been  proclaiming.  He  knew  that  in  fact  rascality 
often  goes  unpunished  in  this  world.  And  on  the 
other  hand  how  numerous  are  the  instances  of  inno¬ 
cent,  patient  suffering,  whose  merit  goes  unrewarded 
on  earth.  If  the  God  whom  Job  had  served  all  his 
life  is  a  just  God,  a  loving  Father,  one  who  takes  in¬ 
terest  and  pride  in  his  creation,  then  there  must  be 
an  accounting  beyond  this  life.  So  on  the  wings  of 
a  triumphant  faith  Job  can  assert  with  absolute  con¬ 
fidence  that  after  this  mortal  has  put  on  immortality 
in  a  world  of  spirits,  he  shall  see  God  face  to  face. 
In  this  splendid  expression  Job  has  mounted  to  the 
heights  of  spiritual  vision  and  has  demonstrated  the 
strength  of  godly  character  in  the  life  of  a  faithful 
servant  of  Jehovah. 

As  if  conscious  of  the  exalted  sphere  to  which  he 
has  mounted,  Job  seems  to  look  down  upon  Bildad 
groveling  in  the  cold  formalism  of  a  heartless  creed. 
And  it  is  with  a  feeling  of  mingled  pity  and  scorn  that 
he  declared,  ‘If  you  continue  to  persecute  me  and  to 
affirm  that  the  cause  of  my  affliction  is  in  myself,  be- 

[80] 


The  Second  Cycle  of  Discussion 

ware  of  the  sword  of  God ’s  wrath,  for  he  will  certain¬ 
ly  punish  you  as  one  who  has  wronged  a  faithful 
servant  and  misrepresented  him.  ’ 

Zophar  —  Chapter  XX 

This  last  thrust  at  Bildad  was  too  much  for  Zophar. 
He  felt  that  the  sting  of  this  reproof  was  intended 
for  him  as  much  as  for  his  companion.  Therefore  his 
thoughts  become  active  and  he  hastens  to  reply.  His 
pride  is  stung  and  the  tone  of  his  reply  is  more  im¬ 
perative  than  on  his  former  appearance. 

‘  ‘  Knowest  thou  not  this  of  old  time. 

Since  man  was  placed  upon  the  earth, 

That  the  triumphing  of  the  wicked  is  short, 

And  the  joy  of  the  godless  but  for  a  moment?” 

From  the  most  ancient  sages  this  dogma  had  come 
down  as  a  universal  rule  by  which  the  world  was  gov¬ 
erned.  Even  tho  a  profane  man  might  mount  up  to 
the  heavens  and  his  head  reach  to  the  clouds,  it  could 
be  only  for  a  short  time,  when  he  would  be  overthrown 
and  people  would  inquire,  “Where  is  he?”  The 
direst  calamity  would  overtake  him  and  his.  His 
children  would  seek  charity  from  the  poor,  because 
he  would  be  required  to  give  up  all  of  his  ill-gotten 
gain.  Zophar ’s  portrait  of  the  godless  man  is  very 
similar  to  the  one  he  drew  on  his  first  appearance. 

He  seems  to  pursue  his  delineation  of  the  profane 
man  with  keen  relish.  He  thinks  of  him  as  actually 
rejoicing  in  his  godlessness.  His  evil  doing  is  like  a 


[81] 


The  Book  of  Job 


sweet  morsel  under  his  tongue.  He  rolls  it  about 
and  enjoys  it  and  is  loath  to  let  it  go.  Although 
justice  will  overtake  him  a  little  later  and  punish 
him  for  his  wicked  deeds,  yet  he  gloats  over  his  wick¬ 
edness  while  it  lasts.  The  riches  he  has  amassed  and 
hidden  away  will  ultimately  be  found.  God’s  ven¬ 
geance  pursues  him  and  brings  him  to  punishment. 
The  blessings  of  life  all  around  which  flow  like  rivers 
will  be  none  of  his,  and  the  flowing  streams  of  honey 
and  butter  which  exist  for  the  righteous  man  he  shall 
not  even  look  upon.  He  has  been  an  oppressor  of  the 
poor,  has  violently  taken  away  a  house  from  its  right¬ 
ful  owner,  and,  therefore,  his  life  must  go  dowui  in 
iniquity  and  shame. 

When  we  reflect  that  Zophar,  in  drawing  this  pic¬ 
ture  of  the  godless  man,  intends  that  the  details  shall 
fit  Job’s  case,  vre  see  how  prejudice  and  preconceived 
opinion  have  warped  him  from  the  most  palpable 
truth.  Such  details  as  he  has  enumerated  could 
never  have  applied  to  the  man  of  Uz.  To  make  Job 
out  a  robber  and  oppressor  of  the  poor,  a  thief  and 
a  cheat,  one  who  took  pleasure  in  rascality, — all  this 
is  too  ridiculous  even  for  consideration.  Yet  Zophar 
in  his  fanatical  zeal,  pursuing  a  single  idea,  has  been 
so  warped  out  of  his  orbit  that  he  can  proclaim  with 
dogmatic  certainty  that  the  picture  he  has  drawn  is 
a  veritable  portrait  of  the  man  who  lies  crushed  at 
his  feet. 

He  has  made  many  bold  assertions,  but  he  has  not 
reasoned,  he  has  not  argued  the  case.  He  has  taken 
no  account  of  circumstances  and  has  paid  no  attention 


[82] 


The  Second  Cycle  of  Discussion 

to  conditions  as  they  exist.  Yet  in  all  sincerity  he 
believes  that  he  is  a  philosopher  and  that  he  is  pro¬ 
claiming  the  eternal  law  of  God’s  dealing  with  men. 
He  is  a  type  of  the  narrow  minded,  self-sufficient 
dogmatist,  nourishing  himself  upon  the  dry  husks  of 
ancient  lore,  living  in  the  past,  and  with  his  eyes  and 
heart  shut  to  the  experiences  of  life,  refuses  to  be 
taught  or  to  have  his  heart  attuned  to  the  throb  of 
the  common  heart  of  mankind. 

Job  —  Chapter  XXI 

Since  Job’s  triumphant  declaration  in  his  last 
speech  he  is  more  collected  than  he  has  been  for  some 
time.  He  has  overcome  his  tenseness  of  emotion  and 
is  less  inclined  to  hasty  utterance.  The  unjust  criti¬ 
cism  of  his  friends  no  longer  exasperates  him.  He 
even  sits  calmly  under  the  most  unjust  censure  of 
Zophar.  A  calm  dignity  now  possesses  him.  He  is 
master  of  himself  and  lays  a  conquering  hand  upon 
the  situation.  When  he  speaks,  his  tone  is  subdued 
but  collected  and  positive.  He  no  longer  contends 
with  his  friends  or  with  Jehovah.  Job  has  been 
thinking,  thinking  seriously.  He  has  been  thinking 
clearly  and  to  an  end.  This  speech  of  his  is  a  more 
direct  answer  to  the  arguments  directed  against  him 
than  he  has  used  for  some  time. 

He  begins  with  a  request  for  attention.  ‘Listen  to 
my  speech,’  he  demands,  ‘and  listen  diligently  and 
think  about  what  I  say,  for  I  have  something  important 
to  tell  you.  Then  when  you  have  heard  my  message, 
if  you  think  it  worth  while  to  go  on  in  your  mocking 

[83] 


The  Book  of  Job 


tone,  mock  on.  As  far  as  I  am  concerned,  have  I 
complained  to  you?  My  complaint  is  to  God,  and 
why  should  I  not  he  impatient  under  my  affliction? 
Now  listen  and  let  me  tell  you  something  that  will 
surprise  you;  and  lay  your  hands  upon  your  mouths 
in  astonishment;  for  when  I  remember  what  I  am 
going  to  tell  you  I  am  troubled  and  horror  takes  hold 
of  my  flesh.  Why  is  it  that  the  wicked  live,  become 
old,  and  grow  mighty  in  power?  Their  children  be¬ 
come  established  in  the  business  and  social  life  of  the 
world,  and  everybody  knows  that  they  have  lived  god¬ 
less  lives.  But  their  houses  are  safe  from  fear  and 
there  are  no  marks  of  God’s  displeasure  upon  them. 
Their  business  prospers,  they  rear  their  families  of 
happy  children  who  go  forth  with  music  and  dancing, 
live  happy  and  successful  lives  and  spend  their  days 
in  prosperity.  When  death  comes  they  are  laid  away 
in  the  grave  and  there  has  been  no  hint  of  God’s  dis¬ 
pleasure. 

‘  But  this  is  not  all.  They  not  only  live  without  God 
in  the  world  but  they  openly  renounce  God.  They  say 
unto  him  depart  from  us  for  we  desire  not  the  knowl¬ 
edge  of  thy  ways.  They  are  self-sufficient  unto  them¬ 
selves.  What  is  the  Almighty  that  they  should  serve 
him,  and  what  profit  should  they  have  by  praying  to 
him?  This  is  the  tenor  of  their  lives.  And  now  I 
wish  you  to  consider,  have  their  lives  really  been  pros¬ 
perous?  Is  that  the  course  of  a  successful  life?  If 
you  think  so  you  think  very  differently  from  what 
I  think.  No,  they  have  never  known  real  prosperity. 
They  have  never  known  the  blessing  of  living  a  godly 

[84] 


The  Second  Cycle  of  Discussion 

life.  They  have  never  lived  in  the  sunshine  of  God’s 
favor.  You  have  branded  my  life  as  wicked,  but  I 
tell  you  the  course  of  a  wicked  life  is  far  from  me. 

‘You  say  that  the  lamp  of  the  wicked  is  put  out 
and  that  calamity  cometh  upon  them,  and  that  God 
distributes  sorrow  in  his  anger.  I  wish  to  ask  how 
often  this  happens.  Of  course  it  will  turn  out  this 
way  once  in  a  while,  as  all  rules  have  their  exceptions ; 
but  it  is  not  true  that  the  wicked  are  punished  in  this 
life  according  to  their  wickedness.  You  say  also  that 
God  lays  up  punishments  for  the  wicked  man’s  chil¬ 
dren.  I  say,  what  does  the  godless  man  care  about 
his  children  after  he  is  gone?  That  they  become  ob¬ 
jects  of  charity  or  even  a  burden  upon  the  community 
makes  no  difference  to  him.  And  who  shall  presume 
to  teach  God  knowledge?  Who  will  devise  a  better 
way  for  governing  the  world  than  he  has  ordained? 
His  plan  is  plain.  One  dies  in  his  full  strength  being 
wholly  at  ease  and  quiet,  successful  and  prosperous 
in  every  way ;  another  dies  in  bitterness  of  soul,  never 
having  tasted  of  the  good  things  of  life  in  any  way; 
but  they  lie  down  alike  in  the  dust  and  the  worm 
covereth  them.  This  is  God’s  plan  and  there  is  no 
such  law  in  existence  as  you  have  been  trying  to  es¬ 
tablish  through  your  prolonged  discussion. 

‘But  I  know  your  thoughts.  I  know  the  devices 
by  which  you  have  planned  to  entangle  me.  You  will 
say,  where  is  the  house  of  the  prince,  and  where  is  the 
tent  in  which  the  wicked  dwell?  You  will  make  dili¬ 
gent  search  for  the  man  who  is  prosperous  and  show 
him  due  respect.  And  have  you  not  made  inquiry 

[85] 


The  Book  of  Job 


of  travelers,  men  of  experience  and  observation, 
and  do  yon  not  have  their  testimonies  ?  Everywhere 
they  will  tell  you  that  an  evil  man  is  spared  in  the  day 
of  calamity,  and  that  they  are  led  away  to  safety  in 
the  day  of  wrath.  Who  will  declare  the  way  of  a 
wicked  man  to  his  face?  And  who  will  repay  him 
for  the  evil  he  has  done?  Yet  when  he  dies  you  will 
bear  him  off  to  a  stately  burial,  and  men  will  keep 
watch  over  his  grave.  He  will  be  laid  away  in  the 
most  pleasant  part  of  the  valley,  and  a  long  funeral 
procession  will  attend  his  obsequies,  as  the  world  had 
shown  him  honor  while  he  lived. 

‘Now  this  is  the  way  of  the  world,  and  if  I  had 
been  the  sinner  you  have  proclaimed  me  to  be,  not 
one  of  you  would  have  dared  to  come  charging  me 
as  you  have  done.  You  would  have  sat  mute  and 
dumb  before  me.  You  would  have  loaded  me  with 
honors.  You  would  not  have  dared  break  the  tradi¬ 
tion  that  does  honor  to  the  prince  in  his  house  and 
despite  to  the  wicked  in  his  tent.  How  vain  then  is 
the  comfort  ye  seek  to  bring  me,  seeing  in  your  words 
there  remaineth  only  falsehood/ 

Job  thus  closes  the  second  act  of  the  drama  with  a 
challenge  of  the  entire  position  held  by  the  friends. 
He  declares  a  principle  of  world  government  in  sharp 
contrast  with  that  which  they  have  so  persistently 
urged.  The  discussion  has  led  to  no  conclusion,  but 
it  is  clear  that  Job  had  successfully  combatted  the 
claims  of  his  antagonists  in  such  a  way  that  their  po¬ 
sition  is  no  longer  tenable.  It  may  be  that  the  truth 
of  the  matter  will  be  found  somewhere  between  the 


[86] 


The  Second  Cycle  of  Discussion 


positions  held  by  the  two  parties.  We  shall  see.  Thus 
far  in  the  career  of  Job  we  have  had  a  wonderful 
demonstration  of  patience,  piety,  reverence,  faith,  all 
tried  under  the  most  exasperating  and  unjust  accusa¬ 
tions.  Through  it  all  the  faith  of  Job  has  mounted 
from  step  to  step  and  has  led  him  as  it  were  to  a  high 
table  land  of  calm  repose,  clear  thought,  and  dignity. 


[87] 


ACT  III 


The  Third  Cycle  of  Discussion 

(Chapters  XXII  - XXXI) 

THE  second  round  of  debate  has  left  the  question 
under  discussion  unsettled,  and  it  will  not  be 
settled  by  a  third  round ;  but  there  are  several  things 
not  yet  brought  out  that  make  a  continuation  of  the 
discussion  necessary.  In  this  his  last  appearance 
Eliphaz  will  present  a  phase  of  character  he  has  not 
hitherto  exhibited.  If  his  two  friends  have  nothing 
further  to  say  in  the  discussion  they  will  at  least  make 
their  bow  and  have  a  parting  word.  Besides  this 
there  will  be  two  other  things  that  have  to  do  with 
the  structure  of  the  play  that  must  be  considered. 
We  shall  here  meet  a  device  peculiar  to  the  ancient 
drama,  the  Chorus,  which  has  almost  entirely  passed 
from  use  in  the  modern  development  of  the  art.  And 
in  the  latter  part  of  this  discussion  we  shall  see  Job 
in  a  new  role  and  understand  the  moral  significance 
of  the  element  of  delay  in  the  poem,  which,  during 
these  prolonged  discussions,  may  have  at  times  ap< 
proached  the  verge  of  tediousness  to  the  reader. 

Eliphaz  —  Chapter  XXII 

Eliphaz  has  been  waiting  with  comparative  patience 
during  the  later  discussion  of  his  two  friends  with 

[88] 


The  Third  Cycle  of  Discussion 


Job.  When  his  time  comes  again  to  speak  he  does  not 
answer  any  particular  speech  of  Job’s  but  rather  the 
tenor  of  his  entire  discussion,  which  is  in  justification 
of  his  conduct.  Eliphaz  therefore  begins  with  a 
pointed  question.  “Can  a  man  be  profitable  unto 
God?”  He  reproaches  Job  for  insisting  upon  the 
rightness  of  his  way,  as  tho  his  doing  so  implied  that 
his  good  life  could  be  an  asset  to  Jehovah.  He  scorns 
such  an  idea.  “Surely  he  that  is  wise  is  profitable 
unto  himself.”  If  Job  had  been  wise,  instead  of  try¬ 
ing  to  please  God  with  his  life,  he  would  have  pleased 
himself.  It  is  no  pleasure  to  God  that  a  man  lives 
righteously,  neither  does  it  benefit  him.  Eliphaz  is 
on  dangerous  ground  here.  What  kind  of  a  God  must 
he  have  set  up  for  himself  that  would  find  no  pleasure 
in  the  righteous  acts  of  his  creatures?  And  if  God 
finds  no  satisfaction  in  the  obedience  of  man,  by  what 
process  of  reasoning  would  Eliphaz  reach  the  conclu¬ 
sion  that  God  would  punish  him  for  his  sins?  The 
law  should  work  both  ways. 

But  Eliphaz  has  still  in  store  a  packet  of  grievous 
indictments  for  his  friend.  Hitherto  he  has  been  less 
insistent  than  his  companions  in  urging  specific 
crimes  against  Job.  But  he,  like  the  others  of  his 
group,  in  his  zeal  to  convict  Job  of  what  he  conceives 
to  be  the  only  explanation  of  his  sufferings,  also  recites 
a  list  of  sins  that  have  brought  about  his  distress.  “Is 
not  thy  wickedness  great?”  he  begins,  “neither  is 
there  any  end  to  thy  iniquities.”  Then  he  prefers 
his  charges.  Job  has  taken  pledges  from  his  brethren, 
has  foreclosed  mortgages  and  deprived  them  of  their 


The  Book  of  Job 


property,  has  stripped  the  naked  of  their  clothing, 
has  refused  to  give  water  to  weary  travellers,  and 
withheld  bread  from  the  hungry,  has  refused  charity 
to  widows,  and  has  been  cruel  to  orphan  children. 
These  are  the  causes  that  have  brought  about  his  dis¬ 
tress  and  the  terrors  that  have  caused  his  wailings. 

But  he  goes  on  with  greater  persistence  and  accuses 
Job  of  having  done  all  this  premeditatedly.  “You 
have  reasoned,”  he  says  to  his  victim,  “that  God  is 
far  off  in  his  heavens,  beyond  the  stars,  behind  the 
thick  clouds,  and  what  can  he  know  about  my  actions 
and  my  thoughts?”  But  how  unjust  is  such  a  con¬ 
ception  of  Job.  All  the  while  he  has  been  crying 
for  light,  for  an  understanding  of  God’s  ways,  that 
God  would  not  withdraw  himself  from  him,  and  that 
he  might  have  access  to  God  and  commune  with  him. 
To  accuse  Job  of  having  plotted  to  deceive  God  and 
sin  deliberately  in  the  various  ways  that  Eliphaz  has 
enumerated,  is  to  do  him  the  most  palpable  injustice. 
He  closes  his  denunciation  with  a  threat  that  if  Job 
persists  in  his  evil  course  God  will  visit  upon  him 
a  deluge  of  destruction  as  he  did  upon  the  antedilu¬ 
vians  because  of  their  unmitigated  sins. 

It  is  a  great  credit,  however,  to  Eliphaz  that  he 
closes  his  last  speech  with  the  finest  tone  of  moral 
elevation  that  he  has  expressed  throughout  the  de¬ 
bate.  This  he  has  learned  from  Job.  And  the  fact 
that  he  could  rise  to  this  beautiful  conception  is  clear 
evidence  of  the  innate  nobility  of  his  life  and  charac¬ 
ter.  He  has  sincerely  tried  to  help  his  afflicted  friend, 
but  his  theories  have  been  materialistic  and  self  cen- 


[90] 


The  Third  Cycle  of  Discussion 

tered.  From  the  noble  example  of  Job  and  his  sub¬ 
lime  utterances  Eliphaz  has  caught  a  glimpse  of  the 
deeper  meaning  of  life.  He  no  longer  has  a  word  to 
say  about  Job’s  earthly  prosperity  as  a  reward  of 
righteousness,  but  instead,  he  now  points  his  friend 
to  a  higher  type  of  reward.  Let  us  quote  these  fine 
words. 

‘  ‘  Acquaint  now  thyself  with  him,  and  be  at  peace : 
Thereby  good  shall  come  unto  thee. 

Receive,  I  pray  thee,  the  law  from  his  mouth, 

And  lay  up  his  words  in  thy  heart. 

If  thou  return  to  the  Almighty,  thou  shalt  be  built 
up, 

Thou  shalt  put  away  unrighteousness  far  from  thy 
tents. 

And  lay  thou  thy  treasure  in  the  dust, 

And  the  gold  of  Ophir  among  the  stones  of  the 
brooks ; 

And  the  Almighty  will  be  thy  treasure, 

And  precious  silver  unto  thee. 

For  then  shalt  thou  delight  thyself  in  the  Almighty, 
And  shalt  lift  up  thy  face  unto  God. 

Thou  shalt  make  thy  prayer  unto  him,  and  he  will 
hear  thee; 

And  thou  shalt  pay  thy  vows. 

Thou  shalt  also  decree  a  thing,  and  it  shall  be  es¬ 
tablished  unto  thee; 

And  light  shall  shine  upon  thy  ways. 

When  they  cast  thee  down,  thou  shalt  say,  There  is 
lifting  up ; 


[91] 


The  Book  of  Job 


And  the  humble  person  he  will  save. 

He  will  deliver  even  him  that  is  not  innocent: 

Yea,  he  shall  be  delivered  through  the  cleanness  of 
thy  hands.’ ’ 

Eliphaz  has  shifted  his  position  to  higher  ground. 
He  has  not  changed  his  age-old  conviction  that  Job’s 
calamities  are  due  to  sin,  but  instead  of  urging  Job’s 
repentance  in  order  that  God  may  restore  his  pros¬ 
perity,  he  now  urges  him  to  reconcile  himself  with 
God,  so  that  he  may  be  at  peace  with  Him  in  the 
spirit.  There  is  no  longer  a  hint  of  the  view  Eliphaz 
formerly  urged  with  such  vehemence,  a  restoration  of 
worldly  prosperity.  On  the  contrary,  he  now  advises 
Job  to  lay  his  treasure  in  the  dust  and  rid  himself 
of  his  gold,  to  cast  it  out  as  stones  of  the  brook,  in  order 
that  the  Almighty  may  become  precious  to  him  and 
that  he  may  find  delight  and  gladness  of  soul,  as  he 
lifts  up  his  face  to  God  in  sweet  fellowship  and  com¬ 
munion  with  him. 

Job  —  Chapters  XXIII,  XXIY 

J ob ’s  reply  deals  with  the  sense  of  loss  and  estrange¬ 
ment  from  God,  which  he  had  bewailed  with  such  bit¬ 
terness  before.  He  seems  to  be  disappointed,  even 
with  the  changed  attitude  of  Eliphaz.  He  is  still  con¬ 
demned  by  his  friend  for  being  a  sinner  in  God’s 
sight,  and  the  bewailing  of  his  sad  lot  is  still  con¬ 
strued  as  being  rebellion  against  God.  But  the  at¬ 
titude  of  his  friends  is  not  the  thing  that  weighs  him 


[92] 


The  Third  Cycle  of  Discussion 


down  most  severely.  If  he  only  knew  where  he  could 
find  God,  so  that  he  might  go  to  the  place  where  he 
resides,  he  would  fill  his  mouth  with  arguments  and 
would  so  present  his  matter  that  God  would  of  neces¬ 
sity  have  to  give  him  an  answer.  And  he  has  such 
faith  in  the  righteousness  of  his  course  that  he  does 
not  believe  that  God  would  brow-beat  him,  or  refuse 
him  access.  But  as  a  righteous  man  he  would  permit 
him  to  present  his  cause,  as  an  advocate  before  a 
judge,  and  that  God  would  render  him  a  decision 
which  would  put  an  end  to  this  controversy  and  would 
deliver  him  forever  from  his  judge.  But  alas,  here 
lies  the  difficulty,  how  can  he  find  him  ?  He  has  gone 
forward  and  God  is  not  there;  he  has  gone  backward 
and  he  can  not  locate  him.  He  has  searched  on  the 
left  hand  and  on  the  right  hand  but  he  is  nowhere 
to  be  found. 

Notwithstanding  God’s  removal  from  him,  Job  is 
sure  that  He  knows  his  way  and  that  sometime  His 
judgment  will  be  rendered;  and  that  in  the  end  Job 
will  come  forth  tried  and  tested  as  true  gold,  because 
he  has  not  given  up  the  Almighty.  He  has  always 
adhered  to  his  law,  he  has  not  spoken  evil  against 
him  and  he  has  always  tried  faithfully  to  keep  his 
word.  The  positive  conviction  in  Job’s  heart,  that 
when  all  is  known  he  will  receive  justice  at  God’s 
hand,  is  reassuring.  The  crushing  load,  that  at  one 
time  had  reduced  him  almost  to  despair,  has  been 
lifted;  and  with  a  clear  and  undiminished  faith  he 
again  looks  to  God  with  confident  assurance  that  in 
God ’s  own  good  time  he  will  be  completely  vindicated. 


[93] 


The  Book  of  Job 


But  there  is  something  about  the  majesty  of  Jehovah 
in  the  presence  of  which  Job  stands  in  awe.  He  rec¬ 
ognizes  that  God  is  of  one  mind,  that  is,  he  is  un¬ 
changeable,  and  that  he  can  not  be  turned  away  from 
his  purpose.  He  recognizes  also  that  God’s  provi¬ 
dence  to  him  is  all  right.  God’s  ways  are  past  find¬ 
ing  out. 

In  the  face  of  his  bewilderment  he  again  turns  to 
his  idea  of  a  court.  Why  is  it  that  God  does  not  ap¬ 
point  times  when  he  will  hear  the  complaint  of  his 
people?  And  why  do  those  who  are  faithful  to  him 
not  understand  him  sufficiently  that  they  on  stated 
occasions  may  approach  him  ?  If  God  must  withdraw 
himself  from  men,  could  it  not  be  that  at  least  once 
in  a  while  they  might  have  access  to  him  to  plead  their 
causes  before  him?  For  there  is  much  reason  for 
doing  so.  There  is  much  high-handed  injustice  in 
the  world  that  needs  redress.  For  instance  there  are 
those  that  remove  the  corner  posts  of  their  fields  and 
try  to  claim  their  neighbor’s  property.  There  are 
those  that  drive  other  people’s  cattle  into  their  fields 
and  claim  them  as  their  own.  Some  even  go  so  far 
as  to  take  away  the  only  donkey  from  an  orphan 
family,  or  the  solitary  ox  from  a  widow.  They  turn 
away  the  needy  from  their  doors  and  drive  the  poor 
to  hide  themselves  in  out  of  way  places  of  the  world. 
High-handed  oppression  also  drives  the  poor  people 
into  the  wilderness  in  herds.  They  gather  the  poor 
remnant  of  the  fodder  left  in  the  field  for  their  beasts, 
and  live  upon  the  scattered  bunches  of  grapes  which 
they  can  find.  They  sleep  out  under  the  open  sky 

[94] 


The  Third  Cycle  of  Discussion 

without  protection.  They  are  drenched  by  the  rains, 
and  the  only  shelter  they  can  find  is  a  cave  in  the 
rocks.  Others  are  reduced  to  the  vilest  servitude. 
They  are  forced  into  slavery  by  their  oppressive 
masters,  and,  even  while  they  labor  for  them,  can 
scarcely  secure  enough  food  to  keep  soul  and  body  to¬ 
gether.  And  this  oppression  is  not  only  in  the  coun¬ 
try  regions,  but  “from  out  the  populous  city  men 
groan  and  the  soul  of  the  wounded  crieth  out.  ’  ’  And 
the  strange  thing  to  Job  about  it  all  is,  that  God  per¬ 
mits  such  high-handed  injustice  to  reign  and  seems  not 
even  to  notice  it. 

These  instances  of  injustice  Job  enumerates  from 
his  own  observation,  and  they  are  exactly  in  line  with 
a  similar  survey  that  he  made  in  reply  to  Bildad’s 
second  speech.  He  is  sure  that  these  things  are  true. 
He  has  seen  too  many  instances  of  them,  and  these 
stern  oppressors  seem  to  flourish  and  prosper  as 
though  they  were  under  the  special  benediction  of 
God’s  protection. 

But  there  is  another  class  of  evil  doers  that  Job  has 
also  noticed  and  to  these  he  has  not  formerly  referred. 
He  wishes  now  to  show  these  in  contrast  with  those  he 
has  just  spoken  of,  and  to  show  that  God  deals  dif* 
ferently  with  them.  These  are  they  that  ply  their 
trades  in  the  dark  and  in  secret.  They  are  the  under¬ 
hand,  stealthy  type  of  criminal:  the  murderer,  who 
rises  just  at  the  dawn  of  day  to  slay  his  victim  before 
the  populace  is  awake ;  the  thief,  who  operates  in  the 
dark  hours  of  the  night;  or  the  adulterer,  who  wait- 
eth  for  the  twilight ;  or  the  robber,  who  digs  through 


[95] 


The  Book  of  Job 


the  walls  of  the  house  by  night.  These  shut  them¬ 
selves  up  in  the  daytime  for  they  know  not  the  light. 

‘  ‘  For  the  morning  is  to  all  of  them  as  thick  darkness ; 

For  they  know  the  terrors  of  thick  darkness.’ ’ 

For  this  type  of  evil  doers  there  is  swift  retribution. 
They  do  not  prosper  as  those  Job  formerly  described. 
Swiftly  they  pass  away  upon  the  face  of  the  waters. 
Their  portion  is  cursed  in  the  earth.  Their  affairs 
do  not  prosper.  Even  their  own  mothers  forget  them. 
They  leave  no  name  after  they  have  departed.  Their 
life  is  a  blight  upon  the  earth  and  they  pass  away 
without  leaving  a  trace  behind.  In  making  this  ex¬ 
ception  Job  has  clarified  his  view  and  has  taken  the 
wind  out  of  the  sails  of  his  accusers. 

But  Job  does  not  give  up  his  main  contention.  He 
still  maintains  that  the  haughty  marauder  prospers 
in  his  course  and  to  all  outward  appearance,  as  tho 
God  preserved  him.  His  protecting  hand  is  over  him 
and  he  is  exalted.  He  is  not  cut  off,  as  the  friends 
have  maintained,  but  when  he  comes  to  the  end  of  his 
career  he  is  gathered  as  a  shock  of  grain  in  the  full  ear. 
This  is  beyond  gainsay.  Job  has  seen  it  many  times. 
Who  will  dare  to  dispute  his  word  or  put  any  other 
construction  on  what  he  has  seen?  Further  discus¬ 
sion  has  only  strengthened  him  in  his  position,  and 
clarified  his  view  in  regard  to  these  repeated  experi¬ 
ences.  He  closes  his  speech  with  a  virtual  challenge 
that  the  conclusion  to  which  he  has  arrived  can  not 
be  successfully  contradicted. 


[96] 


The  Third  Cycle  of  Discussion 

Bildad  —  Chapter  XXVI 

In  Bildad  ’s  last  appearance  lie  makes  no  direct  reply 
to  Job’s  last  argument.  In  fact  he  has  nothing  of 
importance  to  add  to  what  he  has  already  said,  hut 
he  begins  his  short  address  in  the  loftiest  strain  he 
at  any  time  employs.  He  conceives  God  as  ruling 
in  his  heavenly  dominions  in  majesty  and  fear.  Peace 
and  harmony  are  the  marks  of  his  celestial  empire. 
And  there  is  no  limit  to  the  armies  about  him.  By 
this,  Bildad  probably  means  the  angels  that  constantly 
surround  his  throne.  Or,  it  may  be,  that  in  the  light 
of  his  nature  religion  he  may  refer  to  the  heavenly 
bodies  as  the  armies  of  God.  His  sway  is  character¬ 
ized  by  light  and  is  so  widely  administered  that  there 
is  none  upon  whom  it  does  not  shine. 

It  is  a  beautiful  conception  of  divine  Majesty,  and 
Bildad  introduces  it  in  a  final  effort  to  convince  Job 
that  he  is  a  sinful  man.  How  can  any  man  be  just 
before  such  a  God?  How  can  a  human  being,  subject 
to  the  frailities  and  short  comings  of  mortal  nature, 
appear  clean  and  holy  in  the  presence  of  a  God  of 
such  majesty  and  nobility?  To  enforce  his  thought 
Bildad  argues  that  not  even  the  moon  has  brightness 
of  her  own,  but  shines  by  reflected  light;  and  the 
stars,  seemingly  spotless  in  their  heavenly  purity  are 
not  without  blemish  in  the  sight  of  the  infinite  God. 
How  then  can  any  man,  who  is  but  a  worm  of  the 
dust  in  comparison,  claim  that  he  is  righteous  in  God ’s 
sight  ? 

Bildad  has  in  part  redeemed  himself  from  his  former 

[97] 


The  Book  of  Job 


hardness.  He  has  at  least  a  spark  of  the  heavenly 
fire.  He  has  sufficient  elevation  of  soul  to  contemplate 
a  God  of  righteousness  and  love.  But  that  he  wholly 
misunderstands  His  operations  in  the  government  of 
the  world,  we  have  seen  each  time  he  has  appeared. 
He  is  still  the  man  of  narrow  view,  of  but  moderate 
capacity,  and  deeply  entrenched  in  his  prejudices. 
He  has  made  no  further  contribution  to  the  discus¬ 
sion,  has  merely  repeated  what  he  asserted  before, 
without  ability  to  argue  or  to  give  broad  consideration 
to  the  matter  under  dispute.  He  has  exhausted  him¬ 
self,  for  he  had  but  a  meager  store  from  which  to  draw. 

Job  —  Chapters  XXVI,  XXYII :  1  - 12 

But  he  has  angered  Job.  Job  has  been  grappling 
with  the  deep  problems  of  life,  and  before  God’s 
mysterious  ways  he  stands  confused,  stricken  with 
awe.  This  prattle  of  Bildad  about  God’s  way  of 
governing  the  world  is  an  insult  to  Job’s  intelligence. 
His  pretty  phrases  stripped  of  their  verbiage  become 
the  merest  commonplaces.  This  continual  harping 
on  an  instrument  of  one  string  worries  Job  to  impa¬ 
tience.  So  he  turns  on  Bildad  with  bitter  scorn,  as 
much  as  to  say,  ‘You  seem  to  think  you  have  said 
something  important.  But  here  I  sit  weak  and  in¬ 
capable  of  helping  myself,  and  yet  how  have  you 
helped  me?  I  am  without  strength  to  grapple  with 
my  problems,  and  yet  what  support  have  you  given 
me  ?  I  am  ignorant  and  do  not  know  what  to  do,  yet 
what  word  of  direction  or  consolation  have  you 
spoken?  To  whom  have  you  uttered  these  words?’ 


[98] 


The  Third  Cycle  of  Discussion 

Bildad’s  words  have  been  but  a  hollow  echo.  Job 
in  the  anguish  of  his  soul  wants  help.  Bildad’s  cold 
words  are  but  a  mockery. 

Turning  to  his  interlocutor,  he  takes  up  the  thread 
of  his  last  utterance.  ‘You  propose  to  discuss  God’s 
way  of  dealing  with  men,’  he  seems  to  say  to  Bildad. 
‘Let  me  tell  you  something.  The  God  I  serve  is  a 
greater  God  than  he  of  whom  you  have  spoken.  Be¬ 
fore  Him  they  that  are  dead  tremble  beneath  the 
waters  of  the  ocean  and  the  monsters  of  the  deep. 
Hell  and  the  grave  are  open  before  Him  and  the  de¬ 
vouring  abyss  is  not  hidden  from  his  view,  but  is  under 
his  government.  And  if  you  would  see  other  mani¬ 
festations  of  his  power  look  into  the  north  where 
he  has  stretched  out  the  canopy  of  heaven  over  empty 
space.  He  has  hung  the  world  upon  nothing.  He 
gathers  up  the  water  in  thick  clouds  and  carries  them 
out  over  the  land,  but  the  clouds  are  not  rent  nor  the 
waters  deposited  except  at  his  will.  He  envelopes 
the  throne  of  his  glory  in  the  clouds  of  heaven.  He 
has  drawn  a  boundary  upon  the  face  of  the  earth,  the 
horizon,  which  separates  the  light  from  the  darkness. 
The  very  pillars  of  heaven,  the  high  mountain  peaks 
in  the  distance,  upon  which  the  heavens  seem  to  rest, 
rumble  and  quake  at  God’s  command.  He  stirs  the 
seas  into  billows  and  by  his  word  smites  it  into  sub¬ 
jection.  By  his  spirit  the  heavens  are  beautified  and 
garnished  and  the  fierce  elements  upon  the  earth  are 
subdued  by  his  mighty  hand.  But  behold  all  these 
manifestations  of  his  power  and  glory  are  but  the  out¬ 
skirts  of  his  ways.  These  are  but  faint  manifestations 


[99] 


The  Book  of  Job 


of  his  greatness.  Of  God  himself  we  hear  not  the 
faintest  whisper.  Who  then  can  understand  the  pow¬ 
er  and  the  mystery  and  the  glory  of  such  a  God?’ 

Job  seems  to  pause  for  a  moment  as  if  conscious 
that  he  has  vanquished  Bildad  on  his  own  ground.  A 
comparison  of  this  statement  with  Bildad ’s  last  speech 
sets  in  interesting  contrast  the  mental  and  spiritual 
caliber  of  the  two  men. 

Job  now  resumes  his  former  parable — that  is,  the 
central  theme  of  his  contention — the  fact  of  his  in¬ 
tegrity.  He  begins  by  calling  God  to  witness  and  pro¬ 
testing  on  oath  that  what  he  has  declared  is  true.  Al¬ 
though  God  has  denied  him  the  right  of  defending 
himself  and  seems  to  have  abandoned  him,  yet  as  we 
would  say,  “Being  in  good  health  and  of  sound  mind,  ” 
he  proceeds  to  make  his  final  declaration.  After 
having  taken  a  careful  survey  of  his  life  he  declares, 
“Surely  my  lips  shall  not  speak  unrighteousness, 
neither  shall  my  tongue  utter  deceit.”  He  certainly 
Would  not  justify  the  friends,  for  to  do  so  would  be  to 
deny  the  ways  of  God  with  men;  and  with  a  fresh 
protest  he  declares, 

‘  ‘  Till  I  die,  I  will  not  put  away  my  integrity  from  me. 

My  righteousness  will  I  hold  fast,  and  will  not  let  it 
go: 

My  heart  shall  not  reproach  me  so  long  as  I  live.” 

If  anyone  wishes  to  take  issue  with  Job  in  this  state¬ 
ment  let  him  consider  himself  as  his  enemy,  for  he  has 
spoken  the  truth. 


[100] 


The  Third  Cycle  of  Discussion 


He  turns  again  to  the  consideration  of  a  matter  he 
had  discussed  in  his  last  discourse,  that  is,  the  fate 
of  the  godless  man,  the  robber,  the  adulterer,  and  the 
thief.  What  is  the  hope  of  such  a  person  even  if  he 
gain  wealth,  and  lose  his  life?  Will  God  hear  the 
cry  of  such  a  one  when  trouble  comes  upon  him  ?  On 
the  other  hand  will  he  take  any  interest  in  the  Al¬ 
mighty,  even  in  the  time  of  trouble,  since  his  whole 
life  is  a  lie?  No,  he  has  cut  himself  off  from  God. 
He  has  no  access  to  his  presence.  Although  God 
seems  not  to  have  heard  Job’s  prayers,  yet  he  is  dif¬ 
ferent  from  these  profane  men  because  he  still  has 
faith  in  God  and  believes  that  he  will  ultimately  de¬ 
liver  him  from  all  his  trouble.  The  godless  man  has 
no  such  hope.  But  Job  has  taught  the  friends  con¬ 
cerning  this  and  they  themselves  have  seen  it.  Why 
then  should  they  vainly  seek  for  the  true  knowledge  of 
God  ? 

At  the  thirteenth  verse  of  the  twenty-seventh  chap¬ 
ter  begins  another  discourse  which  can  by  no  process 
of  reasoning  be  harmonized  with  the  words  and  atti¬ 
tude  of  Job.  Although  these  words  are  incorporated 
with  Job’s  speech  and  attributed  to  him,  it  is  more 
probable  that  this  is  due  to  some  clerical  error  in  copy¬ 
ing  the  poem.  It  has  been  suggested  that  this  may 
be  the  last  lost  speech  of  Zophar,  and  such  a  conjec¬ 
ture  is  more  probable  than  any  explanation  that  would 
attribute  the  words  to  Job.  Let  us  therefore  look  at 
this  section  and  see  how  it  harmonizes  with  Zophar ’s 
former  point  of  view. 


i 


[101] 


The  Book  of  Job 

Zophar  —  Chapter  XXVII :  13-23 

This  section  begins  almost  in  the  same  words  with 
which  Zophar  closed  his  former  speech,  20 :  29, 

‘  ‘  This  is  the  portion  of  a  wicked  man  with  God, 

And  the  heritage  of  oppressors,  which  they  received 
from  the  Almighty.” 

If  the  godless  man’s  children  increase  in  number  it 
is  only  for  war.  His  offspring  shall  not  be  satisfied 
with  an  honest  living,  and  those  that  remain  of  his 
stock  shall  go  down  to  a  dishonorable  grave,  and  not 
even  their  mothers  shall  lament  for  them.  Tho  this 
godless  man  should  amass  great  wealth  and  accumu¬ 
late  rich  raiment,  he  shall  not  be  privileged  to  enjoy 
it,  and  others  shall  divide  his  silver  among  them. 
When  he  builds  his  home  it  is  only  for  the  day,  as 
tho  he  were  building  a  temporary  booth  or  as  a  moth 
builds  its  cocoon.  His  home  shall  not  be  established. 
He  dies  in  the  midst  of  his  wealth  but  he  goes  down 
to  a  dishonorable  grave.  Calamities  come  upon  him 
in  life  and  he  is  snatched  away  suddenly  as  by  a 
tempest.  God’s  vengeance  seems  to  pursue  him.  He 
stands  in  ill  favor  with  the  people  of  his  time.  Men 
clap  their  hands  at  him  and  hiss  him  out  of  his  place. 
And  all  this  is  the  natural  inheritance  of  the  godless 
oppressor,  which  he  receives  from  the  Almighty. 

Now  this  has  the  very  ring  of  the  speeches  of 
Eliphaz,  Bildad,  and  Zophar.  And  not  one  of  them 
at  any  time  has  given  a  stronger  statement  of  their 
position  than  we  have  it  here.  The  man  who  sins  is 

[102] 


The  Third  Cycle  of  Discussion 

punished  by  God  in  this  world.  All  that  he  under¬ 
takes  fails  to  prosper.  Calamities  overcome  him  sud¬ 
denly.  He  is  held  in  low  esteem  by  those  about  him. 
Divine  justice  pursues  him  with  an  unrelenting  hand. 

Job’s  attitude  has  been  very  different  from  this. 
He  contends  that  the  maurauding  oppressor  succeeds 
in  his  unrighteous  ways.  His  plans  seem  to  prosper. 
He  thrives,  grows  rich  and  powerful,  is  held  in  high 
regard  by  his  neighbors,  is  honored  and  respected  and 
at  his  death  is  given  a  great  burial.  While  this  is  not 
necessarily  always  true,  according  to  Job,  it  is  the 
general  course  of  human  experience.  There  is  scarcely 
a  doubt,  therefore,  that  from  the  thirteenth  verse  on¬ 
ward  we  have  the  words  of  Zophar’s  last  speech.  This 
explanation  of  the  matter  is  perfectly  consistent  with 
the  views  of  all  the  disputants  and  harmonizes  this 
last  discussion  with  all  that  has  gone  before.  So  as 
the  debate  draws  to  a  close  the  question  is  still  unset¬ 
tled,  and  there  is  little  hope  of  reaching  an  agreement. 
The  parties  have  practically  exhausted  the  subject, 
and  in  fact  have  begun  to  repeat  themselves.  Job 
alone  has  maintained  an  original  and  resourceful  po¬ 
sition  in  regard  to  it.  When  he  appears  for  the  final 
argument  it  will  be  in  splendid  vindication  of  himself, 
but  without  reaching  a  decision  in  the  matter  under 
discussion. 

The  Chorus  —  Chapter  XXVIII 

The  controversy  has  now  reached  a  stage  where 
nothing  more  is  to  be  said  along  the  former  lines. 
The  store  of  wisdom  and  the  stock  of  arguments  have 

[103] 


The  Book  of  Job 


been  exhausted.  But  this  situation  is  not  to  he  attrib¬ 
uted  to  the  lack  of  abilitiy  in  the  author  to  see  his 
way  through  the  maze  of  controversy  through  which 
he  has  led  us.  On  the  contrary,  he  has  purposely 
directed  the  discussion  to  this  end.  The  action  of  the 
drama  must  be  delayed  for  the  time  being,  that  the 
deep  design  of  the  main  argument  may  come  into 
clear  view.  The  language  of  the  twenty-eighth  chap¬ 
ter  can  scarcely  be  attributed  to  Job  and  seems  to 
have  little  meaning  when  so  construed.  But  if  we 
think  of  this  chapter  as  a  chant  or  recitative,  put  in 
the  mouths  of  the  Chorus  of  an  ancient  drama,  the 
chapter  has  a  clear  design  and  an  important  place 
in  the  structure  of  the  play. 

The  purpose  of  the  Chorus  is  to  present  matter  that 
is  necessary  for  the  understanding  of  the  dramatic 
action,  which  is,  after  all,  not  a  necessary  part  of  the 
action.  It  is  introduced  here  to  raise  the  discussion 
out  of  the  slough  into  which  it  has  fallen,  because  of 
the  limitations  of  human  wisdom,  into  the  larger  light 
of  the  ways  of  divine  providence.  Through  the  chant 
of  the  Chorus  the  thought  will  be  seen  to  rise  from 
those  realms  of  thinking  which  the  natural  man  re¬ 
gards  most  highly  through  the  stages  of  the  highest 
reaches  of  human  intelligence  and  wisdom  to  the 
sources  of  eternal  good  and  the  ultimate  goal  of  human 
endeavor. 

The  first  strophe  of  the  chant  presents  a  vivid  de¬ 
scription  of  mining  operations,  such  as  doubtless  were 
carried  on  in  the  regions  adjacent  to  the  home  of 
Job.  The  vivid  description,  the  detailed  and  realistic 

[104] 


The  Third  Cycle  of  Discussion 

account  of  the  various  features  of  extracting  the  pre¬ 
cious  ores  and  metals  indicate  that  the  author  was 
speaking  from  first  hand  knowledge.  Beginning  with 
the  operation  of  a  silver  mine  and  the  refining  of  gold, 
he  goes  on  to  speak  of  taking  out  the  iron  from  the 
earth  and  smelting  the  copper  out  of  the  stone.  His 
description  of  the  dark  subterranean  caverns,  which 
have  been  hewn  out  horizontally  under  the  earth,  and 
the  sinking  of  deep  shafts  from  the  surface,  and  how 
the  daring  miners  are  let  down  over  the  cliffs  of  the 
rock  by  ropes,  and  ply  their  mining  operations  while 
dangling  in  the  air,  are  all  vividly  and  realistically 
portrayed. 

The  author  stops  to  reflect  that  out  of  the  surface 
of  the  earth  grows  the  grain  from  which  bread  is 
made,  but  the  operations  going  on  beneath  the  sur¬ 
face  are  more  profitable,  and  absorb  his  attention.  In 
addition  to  the  mines  formerly  described  here  are  also 
the  depositories  of  precious  stones  and  gold  dust.  The 
venturesome  spirit  in  which  these  daring  enterprises 
are  carried  on  is  indicated  by  his  taunt  that  no  bird 
of  prey  has  ever  visited  these  subterranean  passages, 
neither  has  a  falcon’s  eye  seen  them.  Even  the  proud 
beasts  of  the  jungle  and  the  fierce  lion  have  never 
passed  that  way.  Enterprising  man  has  put  the 
forces  of  nature  under  his  feet.  He  has  stretched 
forth  his  hand  upon  the  flinty  rock  and  overturned 
the  mountain  for  his  use.  He  has  been  skillful  in 
cutting  his  way  through  the  mountains  of  adamant 
and  his  experienced  eye  sees  everything.  To  further 
his  operations  he  has  harnessed  the  mountain  streams, 

[105] 


The  Book  of  Job 


has  stored  up  the  waters  in  reservoirs  and  used  them 
in  his  operations  to  bring  the  hidden  treasures  of 
earth  to  view. 

These  enterprises  are  described  with  a  vigor  and 
interest  which  seems  to  be  intended  to  represent  those 
things  in  which  the  genius  of  men  find  natural  expres¬ 
sion.  But  after  all  there  is  no  wisdom  in  all  that  has 
here  been  described.  There  is  much  of  knowledge 
here,  much  ingenuity  and  skill,  much  of  enterprise 
and  experience,  much  of  that  ability  which  lays  the 
forces  of  nature  under  contribution  to  man’s  enter¬ 
prise,  but  nothing  that  looks  beyond  the  material  re¬ 
wards  of  ingenuity  and  cunning. 

There  is  something  better  in  life,  however,  than 
industry  and  commerce  and  wealth.  This  is  wisdom; 
and  the  thought  is  at  once  raised  to  a  quest  of  her. 

‘  ‘  But  where  shall  wisdom  be  found  ? 

And  where  is  the  place  of  understanding? 

Man  knoweth  not  the  price  thereof; 

Neither  is  it  found  in  the  land  of  the  living. 

The  deep  sayeth,  it  is  not  in  me; 

And  the  sea  sayeth,  it  is  not  with  me. 

It  cannot  be  gotten  for  gold, 

Neither  shall  silver  be  weighed  for  the  price  thereof. 

It  cannot  be  valued  with  the  gold  of  Ophir, 

With  the  precious  onyx,  or  the  sapphire. 

Gold  and  glass  cannot  equal  it, 

Neither  shall  it  be  exchanged  for  jewels  of  fine  gold. 

No  mention  shall  be  made  of  coral  or  crystal ; 

Yea,  the  price  of  wisdom  is  above  rubies. 


[106] 


The  Third  Cycle  of  Discussion 

The  topaz  of  Ethiopia  shall  not  equal  it, 

Neither  shall  it  be  valued  with  pure  gold.” 

The  author  has  exhausted  his  vocabulary  in  trying 
to  locate  the  source  of  wisdom  and  how  it  may  be 
attained ;  and  he  has  led  us  to  realize  one  thing,  that 
in  intrinsic  value  all  the  worth  of  the  world  can  not 
equal  the  true  worth  of  wisdom.  Wisdom  can  not  be 
estimated  in  human  wealth.  Even  some  of  the  more 
beautiful  and  costly  jewels  are  not  even  to  be  men¬ 
tioned  in  estimating  the  worth  of  true  wisdom.  With 
this  splendid  array  of  the  product  of  the  richest  mines 
of  earth  we  see  clearly  the  application  of  the  first 
strophe  of  this  chant.  But  as  wisdom  is  thus  beyond 
all  earthly  values,  the  quest  can  not  cease  and  the 
author  comes  back  to  his  inquiry  again. 

“ Whence  then  cometh  wisdom? 

And  where  is  the  place  of  understanding? 

Seeing  it  is  hid  from  the  eyes  of  all  the  living, 

And  kept  close  from  the  birds  of  the  heavens. 

The  Devouring  Abyss  and  Slieol  say, 

We  have  heard  a  rumor  thereof  with  our  ears.” 

As  the  former  inquiry  had  directed  the  thought  to 
the  evaluation  of  wisdom,  these  verses  seek  to  trace 
it  to  its  origin.  The  eyes  of  the  world  have  surveyed 
the  mundane  sphere  in  quest  of  it  in  vain.  The  birds 
of  heaven  have  not  been  able  to  fly  high  enough  or  to 
see  far  enough  to  discover  its  abode.  And  the  only 
faint  rumor  that  can  be  heard  in  regard  to  wisdom  is 


[107] 


The  Book  of  Job 


that  the  Devouring  Abyss,  and  Abode  of  the  Dead, 
the  Abysmal  Gulf,  into  which  all  the  currents  of  the 
world  flow,  have  heard  a  rumor  of  wisdom  with  their 
ears. 

The  third  strophe  beginning  with  the  twenty-third 
verse,  envelopes  the  inquiry  with  a  hush  of  silence. 
If  men  do  not  know  where  wisdom  is  to  be  found  and 
all  the  wealth  of  the  world  is  as  nothing  in  comparison 
with  it,  this  is  but  a  mark  of  human  limitations.  God 
understands  the  ways  of  wisdom,  and  he  knows  where 
wisdom  is  to  be  found ;  and  the  reason  why  this  is  so, 
is  because  his  vision  is  not  limited  like  that  of  man. 
He  looks  to  the  ends  of  the  earth,  and  sees  everything 
under  the  whole  heaven.  When  he  determined  the 
power  of  the  wind,  and  measured  the  waters  in  the 
seas  and  in  the  clouds,  when  he  decreed  that  the  earth 
should  be  watered  by  rain  from  heaven  and  ordained 
the  laws  of  nature  by  which  we  should  see  the  flashes 
of  lightning  and  hear  the  roll  of  thunder  in  the  sky — 
then  it  was  that  he  declared  wisdom  and  established 
it;  yea,  made  it  a  part  of  his  own  omniscient  provi¬ 
dence.  And  unto  man  he  said, 

“Behold,  the  fear  of  the  Lord,  that  is  wisdom; 

And  to  depart  from  evil  is  understanding.” 

This  choral  chant  is  thus  seen  to  have  an  important 
part  in  the  development  of  the  story.  It  has  raised 
the  thought  from  the  plane  of  human  knowledge  and 
wisdom  where  it  has  dwelt  so  long,  to  the  lofty  sphere 
of  divine  intelligence  and  supreme  wisdom.  And  by 

[103] 


The  Third  Cycle  of  Discussion 

implication  it  clearly  points  out  the  lack  of  the  former 
discussion.  The  reason  why  Job,  Eliphaz,  Bildad  and 
Zophar  were  not  able  to  reach  a  conclusion  in  their 
discussion  was  due  to  a  lack  of  wisdom.  Their  knowl¬ 
edge  was  too  limited;  their  sphere  of  observation  and 
experience  too  restricted ;  their  whole  range  of  thought 
confined  to  too  small  a  sphere. 

Job  —  Chapters  XXIX  -  XXXI 

“And  Job  again  took  up  his  parable.”  This 
resumption  of  the  discussion  is  in  a  changed  vein. 
After  listening  to  the  Chorus,  Job  is  in  a  frame  of 
mind  to  express  his  gratitude  to  God  for  all  that 
he  has  been  permitted  to  enjoy  in  the  world.  To  that 
long  period  of  happiness  and  prosperity,  through 
which  he  was  permitted  to  live,  he  has  only  once  or 
twice  in  the  entire  discussion  reverted,  and  then  only 
with  a  passing  glance.  His  thought  has  been  upon 
his  present  calamity  and  the  mysterious  way  in  which 
God  is  dealing  with  him.  Now  he  turns  back  to  take 
a  long  lingering  joyous  survey  of  those  happy  days ; 
and  it  is  writh  a  heart  full  of  gratitude  to  God  that 
he  contemplates  the  joy  and  blessedness  of  that 
period. 

He  yearns  for  a  return  of  the  former  days  when 
God  seemed  to  watch  over  him  with  a  sort  of  special 
protection,  when  he  was  guided  in  the  affairs  of 
life  as  it  were  by  a  special  light  of  God’s  providence. 
He  had  thus  lived  until  he  was  in  the  ripeness  of  his 
years  and  enjoyed  a  personal  friendship  with  God, 
surrounded  by  his  flocks,  in  his  comfortable  home, 


[109] 


The  Book  of  Job 


with  his  children  about  him,  and  all  of  his  affairs 
prospering.  Job  is  grateful  for  these  blessings,  but 
his  thought  wanders  on  to  other  things  even  of 
greater  satisfaction  to  him;  to  the  esteem  in  which 
he  was  held  by  his  fellowmen  and  the  service  which, 
through  God’s  favor,  he  was  permitted  to  render 
them.  He  recalls  the  time  when  he  went  forth  to  the 
gate  of  the  city  as  one  of  the  city  fathers;  how  the 
young  men  stood  aside  in  deference  for  him,  and 
how  when  he  entered  the  council  chamber  the  old 
men  who  were  already  seated  arose  at  his  entrance 
out  of  respect  to  him,  and  how  even  the  princes  re¬ 
frained  from  speaking  upon  any  matter  presented 
until  his  opinion  had  been  heard.  How  honored  he 
was  at  that  time  by  all  who  knew  him.  And  this 
honor  was  accorded  him  because  of  his  superior 
wisdom  and  his  kindness. 

He  reminds  himself  in  detail  of  the  deeds  of  kind¬ 
ness  and  justice  which  he  was  accustomed  to  per¬ 
form  in  those  days.  As  a  magistrate  he  made  it  his 
duty  to  befriend  the  poor  and  needy.  He  helped  the 
orphans  and  those  who  were  reduced  to  the  last 
extremity  of  need.  He  caused  the  widow’s  heart  to 
sing  for  joy  because  of  the  righteous  judgments 
which  he  rendered.  He  thinks  of  himself  as  wearing 
his  turban  as  a  crown  of  righteousness  and  his  cloak 
as  a  robe  of  justice.  The  blind,  the  lame,  and  the 
destitute,  he  looked  after,  and  even  those  who  were 
unknown  to  him,  when  mistreated,  he  made  it  his 
business  to  seek  justice  for;  and  he  boldly  attacked 
unscrupulous  oppressors  and  rescued  the  innocent 


[110] 


The  Third  Cycle  of  Discussion 

victims  from  their  grasp.  It  is  with  great  satisfac¬ 
tion  that  Job  can  review  this  period  of  his  pros¬ 
perity  and  he  thinks  of  it  in  deep  gratitude  to  God 
for  the  satisfaction  it  afforded  him. 

Naturally  at  that  time  he  thought  he  should  die 
in  the  full  enjoyment  of  all  these  blessings  and  that 
he  should  be  permitted  to  live  to  a  good  old  age.  He 
felt  that  a  good  Providence  was  over-ruling  his 
affairs  and  that  the  promising  children  God  had  given 
him  would  continue  the  excellent  traditions  of  his 
family.  He  was  a  prince  among  the  men  of  his  time. 
Not  only  in  the  councils  of  the  city  was  his  voice 
listened  to  in  consideration,  but  he  was  often  re¬ 
sorted  to  in  private  for  advice.  In  important  matters 
people  sought  his  judgment,  listened  to  what  he  said, 
and  waited  for  his  decision  in  silence.  They  took 
his  judgment  as  the  man  of  their  council,  and  if  for 
any  reason  they  could  not  find  access  to  him  at  once, 
they  waited  with  their  important  matters  until  he 
could  be  consulted.  They  waited  with  faith  and  hope 
as  one  in  a  time  of  drouth  waits  for  the  rains  which 
bring  refreshing  and  blessing.  When  those  about 
him  were  discouraged  he  smiled  upon  them  and  re¬ 
newed  their  confidence.  His  wise  council  directed 
them  in  right  ways.  He  dwelt  as  a  king  in  their 
midst,  as  one  to  whom  all  may  apply  and  receive 
comfort  and  help. 

But  these  happy  days  are  passed,  and  with  a  fond 
lingering  look  at  them,  Job  returns  to  his  present 
condition ;  but  oh,  how  changed,  how  fallen.  Instead 
of  his  former  honors,  he  is  now  held  in  derision  by 


[111] 


The  Book  of  Job 


every  one.  Even  the  children  of  the  very  lowest 
order  of  society  make  sport  of  him  and  laugh  him 
to  shame,  and  these  the  children  of  parents  whom 
he  would  have  disdained  to  set  with  the  dogs  of  his 
flock.  He  paints  them  as  gaunt  and  emaciated  for 
want  of  food.  They  pick  up  a  precarious  living  by 
digging  up  the  roots  of  weeds,  bushes  and  broom- 
sedge.  They  are  the  off-scourings  of  humanity  whom 
men  drive  from  their  midst.  Their  dwelling  place 
is  in  the  ravines  of  the  desert  and  caves  of  the 
rocks.  They  are  the  children  of  fools,  base  born, 
outcasts  of  society.  To  this  wretched  rabble  Job  has 
become  a  by-word  and  a  joke.  They  tease  him, 
torment  him,  and  spit  in  his  face.  They  brush  rudely 
by  him  where  he  sits,  push  aside  his  feet  when  he 
tries  to  make  himself  comfortable.  They  rush  upon 
him  in  crowds,  as  soldiers  rush  through  a  breech  in 
the  wall.  They  become  a  terror  to  him,  not  only 
because  of  the  physical  suffering  they  inflict  but 
worse.  No  wonder  he  cries, 

“They  chase  mine  honor  as  the  wind, 

And  my  welfare  is  passed  away  as  a  cloud.” 

This  language  seems  out  of  place  in  the  mouth  of 
Job.  He  has  been  wont  to  speak  of  the  poor  with 
kindness.  How  shall  we  understand  this  terrible 
arraignment?  Has  Job  changed  his  opinion  with 
reference  to  the  unfortunate  ?  He  has  just  reviewed 
the  years  of  his  prosperity.  These  are  children  of 
the  people  who  once  held  him  in  highest  esteem. 


[112] 


The  Third  Cycle  of  Discussion 

Job  still  feels  the  dignity  of  birth,  and  these  vulgar 
insults  are  more  than  he  can  bear.  With  all  of  his 
patience  Job  is  still  only  a  man.  He  is  not  perfect. 
There  is  a  limitation  to  human  endurance.  As  a  man 
of  flesh  and  blood  we  almost  feel  like  forgiving  him 
for  his  want  of  composure.  The  degree  of  impudence 
is  probably  heightened  for  the  sake  of  effect  and  may 
be  intended  to  arouse  our  sympathy  and  vindicate 
the  speaker. 

Such  wretched  treatment  would  naturally  hurl  the 
suffering  man  again  into  the  depth  of  despair.  Re¬ 
verting  to  himself,  his  days  and  months  of  affliction 
seem  to  him  just  one  long  sickness.  By  day  he  is  in 
misery  and  at  night  his  piercing  sores  keep  him  from 
rest  and  his  pains  gnaw  without  ceasing.  God  has 
cast  him  into  the  mire.  He  is  like  dust  and  ashes 
poured  out  before  the  wind.  He  cries  to  God  and  He 
will  not  answer.  He  stands  up  and  looks  all  around 
but  God  will  not  see  him;  yet  His  heavy  hand  of 
persecution  is  ever  upon  him.  There  can  be  but  one 
end  to  such  a  course,  and  that  is  the  grave,  the  dark 
house  of  Sheol.  And  yet,  is  it  not  natural  that  he 
should  make  his  moan?  Will  not  a  drowning  man 
grasp  at  a  straw?  In  his  better  days  it  had  been  his 
practice  to  befriend  those  in  need  and  weep  with 
those  in  trouble.  His  soul  was  grieved  for  those  in 
sorrow  and  when  he  looked  for  God  to  have  compas¬ 
sion  on  him  in  his  affliction,  he  waited  for  light,  and 
only  darkness  came.  His  heart  is  troubled.  He  is  an 
outcast,  a  brother  of  jackals,  and  a  companion  of 


[113] 


The  Book  of  Job 


ostriches.  His  skin  is  falling  from  his  body  and  his 
bones  burn  with  fever.  No  wonder  if  his  voice  utters 
only  moans  and  sobs  and  weeping. 

From  this  gloom,  however,  Job  arouses  himself. 
It  is  only  for  the  moment  that  he  gives  way  to  his 
despair,  and  in  the  manliness  of  his  noble  and  true 
nature,  he  stands  up  as  it  were,  opens  his  heart  to 
God,  and  takes  another  careful  inventory  of  his  life. 
With  much  detail  and  careful  thought  he  reviews  the 
whole  range  of  his  life  to  discover  if  there  is  a 
possible  flaw  in  his  living,  either  in  public  or  private. 

He  begins  with  the  question  of  moral  uncleanness, 
and  declares  that  he  had  made  a  covenant  with  his 
eyes  so  that  he  would  not  even  look  upon  a  virgin 
with  lascivious  gaze.  He  declares  that  his  heart 
had  never  been  enticed  unto  a  woman  and  the  idea 
of  lurking  stealthily  about  haunts  of  vice  is  too  pre¬ 
posterous  for  him  to  consider.  Such  a  crime  is 
heinous  and  should  be  punished  by  the  judges.  No, 
in  word,  deed  and  thought  his  life  is  pure  and  clean 
from  all  licentiousness. 

He  next  takes  up  the  idea  of  living  a  hypocritical 
life,  and  communes  with  his  heart  as  to  whether  he 
has  “walked  with  falsehood”  and  whether  he  has 
been  deceitful  in  his  dealings  with  others.  Has  he 
ever  lived  two-faced?  Has  he  tried  to  appear  one 
thing  when  he  was  in  reality  something  else?  He 
calls  God  to  witness  that  in  this  also  the  integrity  of 
his  life  and  heart  has  been  perfect. 

Could  it  be  that  he  has  ever  mistreated  his  ser¬ 
vants,  disregarded  their  rights  because  they  were 

[114] 


The  Third  Cycle  of  Discussion 

servants  and  he  a  master?  Has  he  been  in  his  rela¬ 
tion  with  them,  such  as  he  would  have  God  be  in 
relation  with  him  as  God’s  servant?  To  the  best  of 
his  thinking  he  can  not  recall  when  he  has  not  acted 
on  this  principle.  In  fact  he  feels  that  according  to 
nature  all  men  are  born  equal.  Wealth  and  poverty 
are  therefore  a  matter  of  accident,  and  he  thinks  of 
his  own  servants  as  worthy  of  enjoying  the  privileges 
of  life  and  happiness  as  well  as  himself.  This  is  a 
remarkably  democratic  view  to  find  expression  in  the 
patriarchal  age. 

He  next  examines  himself  in  regard  to  his  attitude 
towards  the  poor.  Has  he  neglected  them?  Has  he 
refused  aid  to  the  widow?  Has  he  selfishly  eaten  his 
food  and  neglected  the  orphan  and  the  destitute? 
No,  as  he  reviews  his  life,  from  his  youth  up  he  had 
treated  the  orphan  as  a  father  and  had  been  generous 
to  the  needy.  He  has  given  clothing  to  those  in  want 
and  has  never  spoken  or  acted  in  a  hard  manner  to 
those  in  need.  So  sure  is  he  of  his  conduct  on  this 
point  that  he  calls  upon  God  to  punish  him  with  dire 
affliction  if  he  has  ever  been  cruel  to  the  unfortunate. 

Should  it  be  thought  that  he  put  his  trust  in  his 
wealth  and  that  he  prided  himself  because  his  wealth 
was  great?  This  too  would  be  a  false  accusation.  If 
he  has  been  warped  out  of  his  orbit  as  a  true  man 
because  of  his  riches,  and  has  pandered  to  the  aris¬ 
tocratic  classes  because  of  social  distinction,  or  has 
fawned  upon  greatness  for  the  sake  of  power  or 
prestige,  he  can  find  no  trace  of  it  in  the  review  of  his 
life.  To  have  done  so  would  be  a  great  fault  and 


[115] 


The  Book  of  Job 


should  be  punished  by  the  judges.  For  in  doing  so 
he  would  have  denied  God  who  gave  him  all. 

Once  more  he  conceives  that  he  might  have  erred 
by  rejoicing  at  the  destruction  of  his  enemies,  or  have 
found  pleasure  in  the  misfortune  of  those  he  did  not 
like.  But  no,  a  review  of  his  life  finds  no  trace  of 
such  actions.  He  has  not  sinned  with  his  mouth  by 
pronouncing  a  curse  upon  anyone.  On  the  other 
hand,  the  whole  tenor  of  his  life  has  been  to  show 
kindness  and  helpfulness  to  others.  His  servants 
would  bear  him  witness  that  there  is  not  a  person  in 
the  neighborhood  who  has  not  been  a  guest  at  his 
table  and  been  hospitably  entertained;  and  when 
travelers  came  into  the  town  where  he  lived  not  one 
of  them  ever  lodged  in  the  street,  but  they  were  invited 
into  his  home  to  share  his  bounties  with  him.  His 
course  of  life  has  been  open,  frank  and  generous. 
He  has  nothing  to  hide  from  anyone.  He  has  taken 
his  honorable  and  honest  course  before  the  world. 
He  has  not  inquired  what  society  would  think  of  his 
conduct.  He  has  not  been  influenced  by  the  con¬ 
ventionalities  of  the  aristocratic  circles  in  which  he 
moves.  His  course  of  life  has  been  dictated  only  by 
what  was  right  and  just  and  honorable. 

Job’s  review  of  his  life  has  been  comprehensive 
and  searching.  He  is  able  to  discover  no  point  at 
which  he  has  failed,  that  could  account  for  the 
punishment  inflicted  upon  him.  He  stands  before 
God  bewildered,  confused,  dismayed;  yet  trusting 
and  maintaining  his  faith.  The  only  explanation 
he  can  give  to  his  inquiries  is,  that  God  is  treating 

[116] 


The  Third  Cycle  of  Discussion 

him  like  an  enemy,  and  has  passed  harsh  judgment 
upon  his  life. 

Oh,  that  he  might  have  access  to  God,  that  he 
might  prove  his  innocence  before  him.  Behold,  here 
is  the  whole  record  of  his  days  on  earth,  written  out 
in  plain  character,  and  subscribed  by  his  own  signa¬ 
ture.  Would  that  God  might  reveal  his  charges 
against  him,  that  Job  might  have  them  also  in  writ¬ 
ten  form.  He  would  carry  them  around  upon  his 
shoulder,  he  would  bind  them  for  a  crown  upon  his 
forehead.  He  would  let  the  world  pass  judgment 
upon  whether  they  were  true  or  not.  If  he  could 
but  have  access  to  God  he  would  declare  unto  him 
every  detail  of  his  life.  As  a  prince  he  would  go 
forth  in  the  integrity  of  his  heart  and  in  the  right¬ 
eousness  of  his  cause  and  maintain  his  course  before 
Him. 

This  is  a  masterly  and  noble  vindication  of  the 
integrity  of  a  true  life,  and  here  Job’s  discourse 
properly  ends.  There  is  nothing  more  that  a  just 
and  honorable  man  can  do  to  set  himself  at  rights 
before  the  world.  And  so  sure  is  he  of  the  truth  of 
all  that  he  has  asserted,  that  before  leaving  the  sub¬ 
ject  he  wishes  to  go  on  record  in  a  practical  way. 
As  a  man  of  means,  and  an  extensive  farmer  and 
property  owner  what  has  been  his  attitude  towards 
the  Almighty,  who  gave  him  all  that  he  had?  Has 
he  been  considerate  of  God’s  blessings?  Has  he 
been  a  good  steward,  and  has  he  carefully  husbanded 
the  resources  committed  to  his  keeping?  Has  his 
life  been  lived  in  carelessness  or  indifference  to 


[117] 


The  Book  of  Job 


others?  If  he  has  carried  on  his  farming  operations 
without  due  regard  to  making  them  productive,  if  he 
has  practised  fraud  in  his  dealings,  or  has  in  anyway 
wronged  those  who  were  in  his  employ,  he  prays 
God  that  thistles  may  grow  in  his  fields  henceforth 
instead  of  wheat  and  cockle  instead  of  barley.  With 
this  solemn  adjuration  “the  words  of  Job  are  ended.’’ 


[118] 


ACT  IV 


Elihu’s  Intervention 

Chapters  XXXII  -  XXXVII 

THE  FOURTH  section  of  the  poem  seems  to  be 
somewhat  at  variance  with  the  rest  of  the  book. 
It  is  made  up  of  a  long  discourse  by  a  young  man 
who  has  not  hitherto  appeared  in  the  work.  He 
seems  however  to  have  been  present  during  practi¬ 
cally  all  of  the  previous  discussion.  He  has  taken 
notes  on  what  was  said  and  has  worked  them  up 
into  a  more  or  less  orderly,  if,  at  times,  incoherent, 
discourse. 

This  matter  has  been  accounted  for  in  different 
ways.  It  has  been  suggested  that  the  original  author 
of  the  drama,  a  number  of  years  after  the  rest  of  the 
work  was  written,  came  back  to  it  and  added  this 
section  with  the  idea  of  making  it  more  up  to  date 
and  bringing  it  into  conformity  with  the  changing 
religious  thought  of  the  day.  Such  a  suggestion  is  in 
keeping  with  the  way  in  which  the  new  speaker 
makes  his  appearance.  He  represents  himself  as 
being  young  while  the  other  characters  of  the  play 
are  very  old.  They  have  not  been  represented  as  very 
old  men  in  the  play  up  to  this  time.  Although 
patriarchs,  some  of  them  at  least,  Job  and  Zophar 
for  instance,  are  not  thought  of  as  being  very  far 

[119] 


The  Book  of  Job 


advanced  in  years.  But  there  is  probably  a  better 
way  to  account  for  this  material.  It  does  not  seem 
to  belong  to  the  same  period  that  produced  the  rest 
of  the  work.  It  is  probable  that  it  is  the  work  of 
a  later  hand,  an  addition  made  probably  centuries 
after  the  original  work  was  produced  with  the  idea 
of  bringing  the  drama  into  line  with  the  current 
thinking  of  that  day. 

The  discourse  of  Elihu  does  not  rise  to  the  general 
level  of  the  rest  of  the  book.  The  speaker  is  a  young 
man,  wanting  in  experience,  with  limited  observa¬ 
tion,  but  withal  a  pretty  good  opinion  of  himself. 
His  self-confidence  and  insistence  upon  the  impor¬ 
tance  of  his  message,  which,  after  all,  makes  but  a 
slight  contribution  to  the  actual  thought  of  the 
poem,  are  not  calculated  to  predispose  us  in  his  favor. 
He  is  a  ready  speaker,  rather  tactful  in  presenting 
his  argument,  in  the  development  of  which  however 
he  frequently  loses  his  way,  and  is  more  skillful  in 
starting  a  line  of  thought  than  in  concluding  it.  His 
contribution,  however,  deserves  a  careful  and  con¬ 
siderate  examination. 

The  first  five  verses  of  the  thirty-second  chapter 
constitute  a  prologue  to  this  part,  in  which  the  new 
speaker  is  presented  with  his  credentials  and  pedi¬ 
gree  and  placed  in  the  middle  of  the  stage.  It  will 
be  observed  that  these  verses  are  prose,  and  that  the 
poetry  is  not  resumed  until  the  sixth  verse.  The 
thought,  too,  is  in  the  nature  of  an  explanation.  If 
we  think  of  these  verses,  therefore,  as  being  placed 
in  the  mouth  of  the  Chorus,  the  interpretative  char- 


j Elihu’s  Intervention 

acter  of  this  introduction  will  assume  its  proper  place 
in  the  drama. 

Elihu  is  the  son  of  Barachel  the  Buzite,  of  the 
family  of  Ram.  As  he  has  listened  to  the  discussion 
he  has  been  angered  and  disappointed.  He  was 
angered  at  Job  because  he  justified  himself  rather 
than  God ;  at  the  friends  because  they  were  not  able 
to  confute  Job  in  argument.  He  has  waited  respect¬ 
fully,  if  impatiently,  therefore,  to  enter  the  dis¬ 
cussion  himself.  When  he  is  sure  that  the  debate  is 
over  he  eagerly  seizes  the  opportunity  to  be  heard. 

He  makes  clear  in  his  opening  words  why  he  re¬ 
mained  silent  so  long.  His  youth,  compared  with 
the  great  age  of  the  others,  and  his  reverence  for 
years  constitute  the  sole  cause.  Days  should  speak, 
he  thinks,  and  multitude  of  years  should  teach  wis¬ 
dom.  But  there  is  also  a  spirit  of  inspiration  in  man 
that  can  not  be  ignored.  He  feels  that  he  has  a  mes¬ 
sage  that  should  be  heard,  a  message  inspired  by  the 
Almighty  which  it  is  incumbent  upon  him  to  deliver. 
Wisdom  is  not  restricted  to  the  aged  nor  to  those 
high  in  authority.  These  are  the  considerations 
upon  which  he  justifies  his  entrance  into  the  discus¬ 
sion.  It  is  interesting  to  note  that  notwithstanding 
his  eagerness  to  be  heard  and  his  feeling  that  he  is 
inspired  with  a  message  of  importance,  all  he  avows 
his  purpose  to  do  is  to  show  his  opinion. 

His  first  address  is  to  the  three  friends.  He  has 
been  disappointed  in  them  and  he  frankly  tells  them 
so.  He  had  paid  careful  attention  to  their  arguments 
and  followed  the  evolution  of  their  thought  as  they 

[121] 


The  Book  of  Job 


searched  out  what  to  say.  But  not  one  of  them  had 
convinced  Job  of  his  error  or  had  successfully  an¬ 
swered  his  arguments.  And  he  warns  them  not  to 
justify  themselves  for  their  failure  by  thinking  that 
they  had  spoken  wisely  and  had  failed  because  Job’s 
arguments  were  unanswerable.  Job  should  have 
been  answered  and  confuted.  But  as  Job  had  not 
directed  his  words  against  the  present  speaker  he 
does  not  propose  to  answer  him  for  them. 

These  are  rather  sharp  words,  especially  from  a 
young  man,  and  they  have  their  effect.  Elihu  sees 
the  change  that  comes  over  the  countenances  of  the 
three.  He  is  almost  startled  at  the  result.  He  begins 
to  speak  to  himself. 

“They  are  amazed,  they  answer  no  more; 

They  have  not  a  word  to  say. 

And  shall  I  wait  because  they  speak  not, 

Because  they  stand  still  and  answer  no  more? 

I  also  will  answer  my  part, 

I  also  will  show  mine  opinion. 

For  I  am  full  of  words : 

The  spirit  within  me  constraineth  me. 

Behold  my  breast  is  as  wine  which  hath  no  vent ; 

Like  new  wine  skins  it  is  ready  to  burst.  ’  ’ 

He  speaks  because  he  must.  He  can  no  longer  con¬ 
tain  himself.  As  the  scowls  slowly  pass  away  from 
the  blanched  faces  he  turns  again  to  the  three  in  a 
courteous  manner  and  with  an  apologetic  air.  He 
assures  them  that  it  is  not  his  wont  to  respect  any 


[122] 


Elihu!  s  Intervention 


man’s  person,  neither  is  he  given  to  flattery  or  adula¬ 
tion.  It  is  beneath  his  dignity  to  apply  vain  titles 
to  anyone.  He  would  regard  himself  as  worthy  of 
punishment  if  he  did  so. 

Having  in  a  way  reached  an  understanding  with 
the  friends,  Elihu  now  proceeds  to  arraign  Job  before 
a  bar  of  justice,  and  by  a  series  of  arguments  to  con¬ 
vict  him  of  serious  fault.  He  again  urges  the  im¬ 
portance  of  his  message  and  avers  its  truthfulness. 
It  is  from  the  uprightness  of  his  heart  that  he  speaks, 
and  what  he  knows  his  lips  shall  utter  sincerely.  He 
lives  and  moves  in  the  spirit  of  the  Almighty.  He 
recognizes  that  in  delivering  his  message  he  is  the 
mouthpiece  of  Jehovah.  If  Job  has  any  answer  to 
his  speech,  when  it  is  delivered,  he  bids  him  make 
free  with  his  reply.  Yet  he  would  have  Job  under¬ 
stand  that  in  God’s  sight  he  and  Job  are  equal.  They 
are  both  men,  both  are  formed  out  of  the  clay.  He 
proposes  to  deal  fairly  in  his  discussion.  He  does  not 
wish  to  frighten  Job  and  he  will  not  press  him  too 
hard  in  the  argument. 

But  Job  has  made  some  desperate  statements. 
Elihu  has  heard  them.  His  ears  can  not  deceive  him. 
Job  had  said  that  he  is  clean,  that  he  is  without  trans¬ 
gression,  that  he  is  innocent  in  God’s  sight;  and  that 
God  had  treated  him  like  an  enemy  and  found  occa¬ 
sions  to  punish  him.  A  careful  comparison  of  Elihu ’s 
words  with  those  of  Job,  to  which  he  refers,  shows 
that  he  had  not  taken  his  notes  very  accurately,  or  at 
least  that  he  does  not  correctly  represent  Job’s 
thought.  Besides,  he  is  holding  Job  responsible  in 


[123] 


The  Book  of  Job 


the  terms  of  cold  logic  for  expressions  he  had  made 
under  the  provocation  of  severe  trial.  In  permitting 
such  statements  to  escape  his  lips  Job  is  severely  criti¬ 
cized  as  unjust,  but  the  only  reason  given  for  this 
conclusion  is  that  God  is  greater  than  man.  Elihu 
has  lost  sight  of  the  point  in  his  own  argument. 

J ob  should  not  strive  against  the  Almighty,  because 
God  does  not  need  to  give  to  any  one  an  account  of 
his  dealings  with  men.  But  he  speaks  once,  yea 
twice  to  a  man,  although  he  may  not  regard  his  words. 
One  way  in  which  God  speaks  to  men,  makes  his  will 
known  to  them,  is  in  dreams  and  visions.  When  deep 
sleep  falleth  upon  men  he  opens  their  ears  and  reveals 
his  message.  These  messages  are  for  man’s  good,  for 
his  guidance.  They  restrain  him  from  danger  and 
from  foolish  and  unworthy  action. 

Again  God  speaks  to  man  through  chastisement 
and  physical  suffering,  and  the  speaker  emphasizes 
those  severe  cases  of  illness  in  which  the  physical 
frame  is  brought  to  its  lowest  extremities  and  life  is 
made  a  burden;  when  the  soul  abhors  dainty  food 
and  the  flesh  is  consumed  away  so  that  it  can  not  be 
seen; — severe  cases  that  bring  the  soul  near  unto  the 
grave  and  life  to  its  destroyer.  In  such  experiences 
the  speaker  sees  the  disciplinary  hand  of  God  that 
reveals  his  will  and  gives  his  message. 

God  also  speaks  through  angel  visits.  In  thus  doing 
God  is  gracious  unto  a  man  and  seeks  to  ransom  him 
and  deliver  him  from  going  down  into  the  pit.  He 
restores  him  as  a  child  to  his  freshness  and  innocency 
so  that  he  can  pray  unto  God  acceptably  and  live 

[124] 


Elihu! s  Intervention 


righteously  before  him.  He  also  lives  happily  in  the 
sight  of  men  and  is  given  a  prosperous  career.  By 
this  kind  of  revelation  Elihu  seems  to  see  God’s  hand 
stretched  out  to  man  in  blessing,  in  protection,  in 
guidance  and  deliverance.  It  is  not  stated  why  one 
kind  of  divine  revelation  leads  to  one  kind  of  action 
and  another  to  another  kind.  What  has  been  men¬ 
tioned  is  doubtless  based  on  observations  of  the 
speaker.  Further  philosophizing  upon  the  principles 
involved  is  beyond  his  ability. 

“Lo,  all  these  things  doth  God  work, 

Twice,  yea  thrice,  with  a  man, 

To  bring  back  his  soul  from  the  pit, 

That  he  may  be  enlightened  with  the  light  of  the 
living.” 

Elihu  is  well  pleased  with  his  discussion  of  the  ques* 
tion.  He  feels  the  importance  of  his  deductions. 
‘ ‘  Mark  well,  oh,  J ob,  hearken  unto  me,  hold  thy  peace 
and  I  will  speak.”  Then  with  a  deferential  air  he 
urges  Job,  if  he  has  anything  to  say  on  the  subject,  to 
be  free  to  speak.  Elihu ’s  only  object  is  to  justify 
J  ob.  But  without  more  than  offering  the  opportunity 
to  speak,  Elihu  continues  the  discourse  and  monopo¬ 
lizes  the  conversation,  as  much  as  to  say,  ‘if  you  are 
not  pressed  with  a  statement  hold  your  peace  and  I 
will  teach  you  wisdom. 9 

The  speaker  now  turns  to  the  wise  men.  In  a  con¬ 
ciliatory  tone  and  with  great  deference  he  seeks  to 
form  an  alliance  with  them  against  Job.  Turning 

[125] 


The  Book  of  Job 


away  from  the  sufferer  he  speaks  in  confidential  tones 
to  the  three  and  suggests  that  they  should  decide  on 
some  plan  of  procedure  in  which  to  refute  Job’s 
arguments.  They  should  decide  what  course  to  pur¬ 
sue  and  determine  among  themselves  upon  what  is 
good.  But,  as  in  his  address  to  Job,  Elihu  does  all 
the  talking  and  chooses  what  is  good.  In  the  attitude 
he  here  assumes  he  takes  the  general  position  of  the 
friends  that  Job  is  guilty  of  sin,  that  God  is  punish^ 
ing  him  and  that  he  should  be  corrected  for  his  rash 
utterances.  He  again  points  out  some  of  the  things 
Job  has  said  which  he  states  with  no  more  accuracy 
than  before.  From  Job’s  claims,  that  he  is  righteous, 
that  God  had  withdrawn  himself  so  that  Job  can  no 
longer  find  access  to  him,  and  that  he  is  punished 
without  cause,  Elihu  comes  to  the  conclusion  that  Job 
is  a  terrible  sinner  who  “drinketh  up  scoffings  like 
water,”  and  he  charges  him  with  going  in  company 
with  workers  of  iniquity  and  associating  with  wicked 
men.  And  again  he  quotes  him: 

‘  ‘  For  he  hath  said,  ‘  It  profiteth  a  man  nothing, 
That  he  should  delight  himself  with  God’.” 

What  J ob  actually  had  said  is  this : 

“What  is  the  Almighty  that  we  should  serve  him? 

And  what  profit  shall  we  have  if  we  pray  unto  him  ?  ’  ’ 

And  this  was  spoken,  not  as  expressing  Job’s  thought, 
but  was  put  in  the  mouth  of  a  wicked  marauder  who 
is  living  a  life  of  high-handed  injustice  in  the  world, 
a  thing  which  the  three  friends  claim  did  not  exist. 


[126] 


Elihu’ s  Intervention 


It  is  a  flagrant  case  of  misquoting  Job’s  words,  tor¬ 
turing  his  thought,  and  even  misunderstanding  his 
position. 

In  sharp  contrast  to  the  wicked  and  short-sighted 
course  of  Job  Elihu  now  sets  the  greatness  and  right¬ 
eousness  of  God. 

“Far  be  it  from  God,  that  he  should  do  wickedness, 
And  from  the  Almighty,  that  he  should  commit 
iniquity.  ’  ’ 

He  will  deal  justly  with  all  men  and  render  to  them 
according  to  their  way.  No  injustice  and  no  wrong 
doing  is  compatible  with  his  nature.  Who  put  Je¬ 
hovah  in  charge  of  the  whole  earth,  or  who  hath  put 
the  affairs  of  the  earth  at  his  disposal?  Manifestly, 
no  one.  He  is  Lord  of  Lords  and  King  of  Kings.  If 
he  should  set  his  heart  upon  himself,  withdraw  himself 
from  men,  and  contemplate  only  his  own  grandeur 
and  majesty;  if  he  would  withdraw  his  power  and 
spirit  from  the  world, 

“All  flesh  should  perish  together, 

And  man  should  turn  again  unto  the  dust.” 

This  is  a  fine  thought  of  the  omniscience  and  omnip¬ 
otence  of  God.  But  what  it  has  to  do  with  Elihu ’s 
contention  is  difficult  to  see.  Job  has  all  along  con¬ 
tended  for  the  same  things  and  even  with  more  elo¬ 
quence  and  in  nobler  language. 

Beginning  with  the  sixteenth  verse  of  the  thirty- 

[127] 


The  Book  of  Job 


fourth  chapter  the  thought  becomes  obscure.  Again 
Elihu  takes  occasion  to  call  for  order.  His  frequent 
“  listens  ”  remind  us  of  those  speakers,  who,  to  secure 
attention  to  their  meager  line  of  thinking,  have  fre¬ 
quently  to  inject  these  calls  for  attention  to  maintain 
the  apparent  interest  of  their  hearers.  They  seem  to 
forget  that  an  impelling  message  is  a  far  more  poten¬ 
tial  means  of  securing  attention  than  all  the  ‘  ‘  listens  ’  ’ 
they  can  use.  So  Elihu  calls  for  attention  on  enter¬ 
ing  upon  his  diffused  discussion  which  we  are  not  at 
all  sure  we  can  understand.  But  the  thought  seems 
to  be  something  like  this :  ‘  Should  even  the  great  God 
of  heaven,  whom  he  had  just  extolled,  govern  the 
world  by  right  if  he  did  not  govern  justly?  And 
will  Job  condemn  him  because  he  is  mighty  and  gov¬ 
erns  righteously? — will  Job  condemn  him  because  he 
has  no  respect  for  the  person  of  princes,  regards  not 
rich  or  poor,  because  all  are  the  works  of  his  hands? 
All  die  suddenly  without  distinction  in  God’s  sight. 
Why  then  should  Job  find  fault  with  God’s  govern¬ 
ing  the  world  in  a  way  that  he  can  not  understand? 

‘God  is  vigilant,  his  eyes  are  everywhere.  He  sees 
what  men  do.  There  is  no  darkness  or  gloom  which 
obscures  them  from  him,  or  in  which  they  can  hide 
their  works  of  iniquity.  He  knows  their  ways  and  their 
lives  and  judges  them  accordingly.  Even  great  men 
of  power  he  destroys  in  ways  that  we  can  not  under¬ 
stand,  and  raises  up  others  to  take  their  place.  Such 
sudden  and  remarkable  reversals  of  fortune  come  as 
God’s  punishment  for  unrighteous  living.  These 

[128] 


Elihu!  s  Intervention 


punishments  come  suddenly  as  in  a  night.  God  open¬ 
ly  afflicts  men  in  the  sight  of  their  neighbors, 

“Because  they  turned  aside  from  following  him, 

And  would  not  have  regard  for  any  of  his  ways.  ’  ’ 

Elihu  evidently  means  this  for  Job.  He  has  been 
afflicted  “in  the  open  sight  of  others.”  To  his  think¬ 
ing  there  is  no  possible  explanation  of  Job’s  suffering 
but  the  fact  that  his  life  has  been  wicked  and  wrong 
in  God’s  sight.  So  his  argument  makes  out  Job  as 
an  oppressor  of  the  poor,  one  whose  heavy  hand  has 
caused  the  out-cry  of  the  distressed  and  the  needy,  and 
this  cry  has  caused  the  vengeance  of  God  to  be  visited 
upon  him.  This  is  God’s  way  of  dealing  with  men 
and  his  way  of  preventing  the  godless  man  from  ac¬ 
quiring  great  power  and  thus  becoming  a  snare  to  the 
people.  This  is  the  same  conclusion  to  which  the  false 
theories  of  the  three  friends  had  led  them.  Elihu 
is  no  more  able  to  escape  the  natural  consequences 
of  his  own  false  theory  than  were  the  others. 

The  speaker  now  turns  to  Job  directly  with  a  ques¬ 
tion.  If  a  person  in  affliction  should  feel  that  the 
hand  of  God  is  heavy  upon  him  in  chastisement  and 
would  recognize  that  this  is  punishment  for  his  evil 
ways;  if  he  would  confess  his  short-comings  and  his 
ignorance  and  pray  for  enlightenment  and  avow  his 
purpose  not  to  repeat  his  mistakes ;  if  all  this  should 
be  done,  would  he  have  any  right  to  expect  that  God 
would  recompense  him  just  as  he  in  his  affliction 
thinks  He  should?  Would  it  not  be  God’s  prerogative 


[129] 


The  Book  of  Job 


to  afflict  his  creatures  as  much  as  he  might  desire 
without  making  any  explanation  of  his  course  with 
them?  But  Elihu  is  only  propounding  the  question. 
Job  must  answer  it  and  take  the  consequences.  This 
section  is  very  obscure  and  the  reasoning  quite  in¬ 
coherent.  The  foregoing  seems  to  be  the  meaning  in¬ 
tended. 

Elihu  now  turns  upon  his  assailant  still  more  di¬ 
rectly.  He  has  talked  over  the  fate  of  Job  with  men 
of  understanding  and  all  wise  men  have  come  to  the 
same  conclusion.  Job  has  spoken  foolishly.  He  has 
not  understood  what  he  was  saying.  His  words  are 
devoid  of  wisdom  and  the  speaker  with  other  wise  men 
would  like  to  see  Job  tried  to  the  uttermost,  because 
he  has  spoken  like  a  sinful  man.  Job  is  therefore  a 
bad  example.  To  his  sin  he  has  added  rebellion.  He 
has  rejoiced  in  the  triumph  of  evil  and  has  spoken 
many  words  against  truth  and  righteousness. 

In  the  course  of  his  argument  with  the  three  Job 
in  the  anguish  of  his  soul  had  stated  that  God  destroys 
the  righteous  and  the  wicked  alike.  Elihu  now  con¬ 
fronts  him  with  this  statement  and  proceeds  to  ar¬ 
raign  him  before  the  court  of  justice  for  dishonoring 
God  by  these  words.  He  wonders  whether  J ob  regards 
himself  more  righteous  than  God,  or  if  he  thinks  him¬ 
self  great  enough  to  have  the  right  to  say  such  things ; 
and  he  points  Job  to  the  heavens.  Behold  how  much 
higher  are  the  skies  than  this  poor  man.  It  is  implied 
and  rightly,  that  God’s  knowledge  and  goodness  are 
as  far  above  Job’s  as  the  heavens  are  above  the  earth. 
This  being  true,  what  does  it  matter  to  God  whether 


[130] 


Elihu’ s  Intervention 


Job  has  sinned  or  not?  If  he  has  sinned  how  does 
that  effect  God?  If  he  has  been  righteous  how  does 
that  help  him?  The  little  affairs  of  one  man  are 
nothing  to  the  great  Jehovah.  Of  course  Job’s  wick¬ 
edness  may  hurt  him  as  a  man  and  his  righteousness 
may  be  profitable  to  him  as  a  man,  but  neither  the  one 
nor  the  other  affects  God. 

From  the  ninth  verse  of  the  thirty-fifth  chapter  the 
meaning  again  becomes  very  uncertain.  The  thought 
is  obscure  and  the  end  to  be  reached  in  the  argument 
is  by  no  means  clear.  The  meaning  however  may  be 
something  like  this.  ‘Evil  doers  everywhere  cry  out 
because  of  the  afflictions  visited  upon  them.  These 
afflictions  are  the  punishments  of  God.  Instead  of 
mending  their  ways  and  seeking  God’s  favor  and 
blessing,  which  would  bring  gladness  into  their  lives, 
they  persist  in  their  evil  course,  making  their  moan 
and  their  lamentation,  suffering  under  the  hand  of 
punishment,  because  their  hearts  are  set  on  evil. 
Their  cry  is  an  empty  wail.  God  will  not  hear  nor 
regard  it.  Job  is  identified  with  those  who  lift  up 
their  voices  in  vain  entreaties.  If  God  will  not  hear 
him  in  his  cries  of  suffering,  how  much  less  will  he 
hear  him  when  he  unjustly  censures  him  for  mistreat¬ 
ment.  But  as  God  has  not  avenged  himself  upon 
Job  in  anger,  neither  will  he  hear  his  insolent  cries. 
All  of  Job’s  wailing  and  false  charges  against  God  are 
so  many  vain  and  foolish  expressions.’  “He  multi- 
plieth  words  without  knowledge.” 

After  this  rambling  effort  to  convict  Job  of  impiety 
and  unjust  criticism  of  God,  Eliliu  calls  again  for 

[131] 


The  Book  of  Job 


attention.  “For,”  says  he,  “I  have  yet  something 
to  say  on  God ’s  behalf.  ’  ’  He  proposes  to  bring  forth 
his  store  of  knowledge  from  the  far  off  sources  of 
ancient  wisdom,  and  will  ascribe  righteousness  to  his 
Maker.  God  is  a  mighty  God,  mighty  in  strength, 
mighty  in  understanding.  He  despises  not  any  of  his 
creatures,  he  deals  justly  with  them  all.  If  they  are 
evil,  his  justice  destroys  them.  If  he  must  afflict 
them,  they  but  receive  the  reward  which  is  their  due. 

But  he  has  a  general,  a  summarizing  argument  for 
this  important  theme.  And  he  is  fond  of  grouping 
his  arguments  in  threes.  As  on  a  former  occasion  he 
discovered  three  ways  in  which  God  makes  his  will 
known  to  man,  so  now  he  finds  the  race  divided  into 
three  classes  according  to  the  way  God  deals  with 
them.  The  first  of  these  is  altogether  good.  It  is 
the  prosperous,  honored  class,  those  to  which  Elihu, 
Eliphaz,  Bildad  and  Zophar  belong.  They  are  the 
successful,  well  to  do,  favored  aristocracy.  God 
withdraws  not  his  eyes  from  these  righteous  men,  but 
he  exalts  them  to  the  association  of  kings,  and  estab¬ 
lishes  them  forever  in  positions  of  honor  and  power. 
They  are  the  nobles  of  the  earth,  the  favored  few. 

But  there  is  another  class  of  righteous  folk,  yet 
these  need  the  disciplinary  hand  of  God  upon  them. 
If  they  are  bound  in  fetters  and  taken  in  the  cords 
of  affliction,  this  providence  of  God  shows  them  their 
mistakes  and  points  out  to  them  that  they  have  be¬ 
haved  themselves  proudly.  By  his  gracious  dealings 
with  them  God  opens  their  ears  to  instruction  and 
teaches  them  that  they  should  leave  their  evil  ways. 

[132] 


Elihu’ s  Intervention 


If  they  listen  to  him,  turn  to  him  with  their  allegiance 
and  give  him  their  service,  then  all  their  future  days 
are  spent  in  prosperity  and  their  years  in  pleasure. 
This  language  would  seem  perfectly  natural  in  the 
mouth  of  either  of  Job’s  three  counsellors.  Elihu  has 
reached  a  common  conclusion  with  the  rest.  To  com¬ 
plete  the  comparison,  if  they  do  not  listen  they  will 
perish  by  the  sword  and  die  in  their  ignorance. 

The  third  class  are  those  that  are  wholly  wicked. 
They  have  no  claim  upon  God’s  mercy.  In  their  god¬ 
lessness  they  harbor  anger  in  their  hearts.  When 
afflictions  come  they  do  not  even  recognize  God  or 
think  to  call  upon  him  for  help.  They  have  never 
known  him  or  tasted  of  the  good  things  of  his  hand. 
They  do  not  live  to  a  good  old  age  but  are  cut  down 
in  the  prime  of  life.  They  perish  from  the  earth  in 
disgrace  and  dishonor  like  an  accursed  thing. 

In  which  of  these  classes  will  Elihu  place  Job?  Be¬ 
ginning  his  application  with  a  general  statement  he 
leaves  no  doubt  as  to  what  he  intends.  God  afflicts 
men  as  a  means  of  making  known  to  them  his  will, 
Elihu  has  asserted.  He  delivers  them  from  affliction 
by  means  of  their  affliction.  That  is,  he  uses  affliction 
to  call  them  to  a  consciousness  of  their  condition,  and 
by  oppression  he  opens  their  ears  to  his  call.  Turn¬ 
ing  now  to  Job  he  affirms, 

“Yea,  he  would  have  allured  thee  out  of  distress 
Into  a  broad  place  where  there  is  no  narrowness; 
And  that  which  is  set  on  thy  table  would  be  full  of 
fatness.  ’  ’ 


[133] 


The  Book  of  Job 


So,  Job’s  suffering  continues  because  be  is  not  willing 
to  hear  God’s  voice  or  obey  His  will.  That  this  is 
just  the  reverse  of  the  truth,  every  reader  knows  too 
well.  How  Job  had  plead  that  he  might  know  God’s 
will,  might  be  able  to  understand  his  ways,  and  feel 
his  hand  of  blessing  upon  him.  Elihu’s  boasted  wis¬ 
dom  from  afar  has  led  him  far  from  the  truth.  It 
was  not  wisdom  drawn  from  knowledge  or  observa¬ 
tion  or  experience,  but  a  code  formulated  to  meet  the 
conditions  of  an  easy  going,  prosperous  aristocracy, 
to  which  the  speaker  belonged.  It  is  cold,  relentless, 
false,  and  inconsequential  in  its  deductions. 

Job  is  full  of  the  judgment  of  the  wicked.  He  is 
represented  as  being  angry  because  of  the  punish¬ 
ments  visited  upon  him.  But  the  pious  Elihu  can 
not  leave  him  without  a  warning  word.  He  should 
turn  to  God,  leave  his  wicked  course  and  reinstate 
himself.  From  Job’s  angle  it  may  be  a  difficult  thing 
to  do;  but  whatever  it  costs,  he  ought  to  make  the 
sacrifice.  Above  all  things  he  should  give  up  his  un¬ 
righteous  attitude  towards  God.  This  is  the  cause  of 
all  his  distress.  He  has  suffered  great  affliction,  but 
he  has  not  chosen  affliction,  he  has  brought  this  upon 
himself  by  his  wickedness.  With  this  good  advice 
Elihu  closes  his  argument  with  an  apparent  air  of 
satisfaction  that  he  has  performed  a  useful  service. 

“Behold,  God  doeth  loftily  in  his  power: 

Who  is  a  teacher  like  unto  him? 

Who  hath  enjoined  him  his  way? 

Or  who  can  say,  thou  hast  wrought  unrighteousness  ?  ’  ’ 

[134] 


Elihu9 s  Intervention 


Elihu  has  brought  his  best  efforts  to  bear  in  trying 
to  vindicate  God’s  course  in  dealing  with  Job,  and, 
with  all  mankind.  But  he  has  signally  failed.  All 
the  arguments  he  has  proposed  have  led  to  no  natural 
conclusion.  God  remains  as  little  vindicated  as  Job 
has  been  convicted;  and  the  question  of  Job’s  relation 
to  the  three  friends  has  not  even  been  touched. 

Elihu  closes  his  discourse  by  reciting  a  poem. 
Opinion  differs  as  to  the  origin  of  this  poetry.  It 
has  been  suggested  that  he  found  a  poem  to  his  liking 
and  inserted  it  as  a  conclusion  to  his  argument.  This 
is  plausable  and  may  be  true.  It  is  in  keeping  with 
his  nature  religion  and  with  his  disposition  to  see  in 
the  world  of  nature  about  him  the  handiwork  of  God. 
The  poem  does  not  seem  out  of  place  in  the  way  he 
uses  it.  It  strikes  a  key  much  higher  in  tone  than 
anything  Elihu  has  yet  produced,  but  it  is  in  keeping 
with  the  general  attitude  of  his  mind  and  the  pur- 
pose  of  his  argument. 

There  may  be  a  better  way  however  to  account  for 
this  poem.  We  have  seen  how  the  author  halted  and 
stumbled  in  his  argument,  because  he  was  evidently 
using  a  form  of  expression  not  natural  to  him.  May 
it  be  that  Elihu  was  more  of  a  poet  than  a  logician? 
And  that  when  he  sought  the  muse  he  found  the  liberty 
that  was  so  much  wanting  in  his  argument?  This 
seems  all  the  more  probable  when  we  consider  that 
at  least  at  two  places  in  the  poem  he  stops  and  calls 
attention  to  the  importance  to  his  message,  in  Elihu ’s 
characteristic  manner.  It  would  have  been  to  take 
unwarranted  liberty  with  the  work  of  another  to  adapt 

[135] 


The  Book  of  Job 


it  so  freely  to  his  use ;  and  one  feels  almost  warranted 
in  saying  that  no  one  except  Elihu  would  have  con¬ 
structed  a  poem  in  just  the  form  we  have  it  here. 

Let  us  look  into  the  poem  itself.  It  is  a  nature 
ode  of  singular  beauty.  It  begins  with  a  description 
of  the  rolling  clouds  and  the  far  away  rumblings  of 
an  oncoming  storm.  The  lightning  is  seen  only  as 
broad  sheets  of  light  above  the  distant  horizon.  The 
red  streaks  of  the  afternoon  sun  pierce  to  the  zenith; 
and  the  drops  of  rain  are  seen  to  fall  on  the  distant 
plain.  It  is  the  picture  of  a  refreshing  shower,  bring¬ 
ing  needed  moisture  to  the  growing  crops.  In  it  the 
poet  sees  the  good  hand  of  a  wise  Providence  bestow¬ 
ing  blessings  upon  his  people.  But  let  us  hear  the 
poet  himself. 

• 

“ Behold,  God  is  great  and  we  know  him  not; 

The  number  of  his  years  is  unsearchable. 

For  he  draweth  up  the  drops  of  water, 

Which  distil  in  rain  from  his  vapor, 

Which  the  skies  pour  down, 

And  drop  upon  man  abundantly. 

Yea,  can  any  understand  the  spreadings  of  the  clouds, 
The  thunderings  of  his  pavilion? 

Behold,  he  spreadeth  his  light  around  him; 

And  he  covereth  the  bottom  of  the  sea. 

For  by  these  he  judgeth  the  peoples  ; 

He  giveth  food  in  abundance.’ ’ 

By  this  time  the  storm  is  at  hand.  In  the  tornado 
the  poet  sees  the  manifestation  of  God’s  power.  With 

[136] 


Elihu' s  Intervention 


the  lightning  He  covers  his  hands.  He  directs  it  so 
that  it  hits  the  mark.  The  peals  of  thunder  are  the 
voice  of  his  mouth.  This  phenomena  the  cattle  under¬ 
stand  and  go  into  their  shelter.  Even  the  poet  is 
awed  by  the  wonder  and  majesty.  His  heart  trembles 
and  is  moved  as  if  in  the  presence  of  Jehovah.  The 
storm  now  breaks  overhead  in  all  its  fury.  We  hear 
the  thunder  rolling  and  reverberating  under  the  whole 
heaven.  The  sharp  flashes  of  lightning  seem  to  pierce 
to  the  end  of  the  earth.  We  stand  with  the  poet  in 
reverential  awe  before  divine  Majesty. 

“Hear,  oh  hear  the  noise  of  his  voice, 

And  the  sound  that  goeth  out  of  his  mouth. 

He  sendeth  it  forth  under  the  whole  heaven, 

And  his  lightning  unto  the  ends  of  the  earth. 

After  it  a  voice  roareth; 

He  thundereth  with  the  voice  of  his  majesty ; 

And  he  restraineth  not  his  lightnings  when  his  voice 
is  heard. 

God  thundereth  marvelously  with  his  voice ; 

Great  things  doeth  he  which  we  cannot  comprehend.  ’ ’ 

It  is  a  majestic  picture  and  is  contemplated  by  the 
poet  with  reverential  awe.  The  terror  of  the  storm 
having  passed,  he  bids  us  behold  some  of  the  gentler 
phenomena  attending  it,  and  invites  our  attention 
again  to  the  divine  purpose  in  God’s  providence. 

“For  he  sayeth  to  the  snow,  fall  thou  on  the  earth; 

Likewise  to  the  shower  of  rain, 

[137] 


The  Book  of  Job 


And  to  the  showers  of  his  mighty  rain. 

He  sealeth  up  the  hand  of  every  man, 

That  every  man  whom  he  hath  made  may  know  it. 
Then  the  beasts  go  into  coverts. 

And  remain  in  their  dens. 

Out  of  the  chamber  of  the  south  cometh  the  storm, 
And  cold  out  of  the  north. 

By  the  breath  of  God  ice  is  given; 

And  the  breadth  of  the  waters  is  congealed. 

Yea,  he  ladeth  the  thick  cloud  with  moisture; 

He  spreadeth  abroad  the  cloud  of  his  lightning: 
And  it  is  turned  round  about  by  his  guidance, 

That  he  may  do  whatsoever  he  commandeth  them 
Upon  the  face  of  the  habitable  world, 

Whether  it  be  for  his  correction,  or  for  his  land, 
Or  for  loving  kindness,  that  he  causeth  it  to  come.  ’  ’ 

This  strophe  is  in  a  meditative  vein.  The  poet  con¬ 
templates  the  phenomena  of  nature  in  a  reverent 
spirit.  He  describes  not  only  what  he  has  seen  on  this 
occasion  but  his  thought  wanders  over  other  similar 
experiences.  His  nature  touches  are  very  fine  and 
subtle.  When  the  snow  falls  upon  the  earth  in  the 
winter  season,  or  the  fructifying  showers  in  the  sum¬ 
mer,  each  is  an  expression  of  God’s  love  to  man. 
Even  the  instincts  of  beasts  are  conceived  in  a  poetic 
vein.  They  understand  the  ways  of  Providence  and 
seek  their  shelter  at  the  coming  of  the  storm.  Man 
stands  in  awe  and  feels  his  nothingness  in  the  pres¬ 
ence  of  divine  Majesty.  As  the  sirocco  sweeps  up 
from  the  south  and  the  cold  mists  and  fogs  come  from 

[138] 


Elihu* s  Intervention 


the  north  the  power  of  the  Most  High  is  again  seen  in 
mysterious  ways.  From  the  view  point  of  the  poet 
ice  is  formed  by  the  breath  of  God  and  almost  instant¬ 
ly  the  broad  rivers  and  the  lakes  are  covered  by  a 
sheet  of  ice  clear  as  glass.  And  by  the  same  mysteri¬ 
ous  power  the  clouds  go  rolling  inland  from  the  sea 
carrying  great  quantities  of  moisture  and  accompa¬ 
nied  by  the  storm  with  its  grumblings  and  mutterings 
and  ominous  flashes  of  lightning. 

We  understand  today  the  conditions  under  which 
some  of  these  phenomena  take  place  and  we  can  ac¬ 
count  scientifically  for  many  of  these  wonders,  and 
yet  so  reverent  is  the  mood,  so  devout  the  spirit  of 
the  poet,  that  we  prefer  to  stand  by  his  side  and  con¬ 
template  the  solemn  majesty  of  the  picture  in  the 
same  spirit  of  childish  reverence  that  prompted  his 
statements.  And  he  does  not  forget  the  moral  les¬ 
son  which  is  taught  by  all  of  this  splendor.  The  hot 
wind  from  the  south,  the  chill  blizzard  from  the  north¬ 
east,  the  frost,  the  snow  and  the  hail,  as  well  as  the 
gentle  showers,  the  thundering  and  the  lightning  are 
so  many  manifestations  of  the  presence  of  the  Almighty 
power.  All  these  forces  of  nature  are  turned  about 
by  His  guidance  that  they  may  do  whatsoever  he 
commandeth  them  upon  the  face  of  the  habitable 
world.  And  God  uses  these  forces  for  various  pur¬ 
poses.  It  may  be  for  man’s  correction,  it  may  be  for 
the  good  of  the  land  and  the  people,  or  it  may  be 
an  expression  of  his  loving  kindness  to  the  human 
race. 

The  next  strophe  begins  with  a  formula  that  one 

[139] 


The  Book  of  Job 


does  not  hesitate  to  attribute  to  Elihu.  “Hearken 
unto  this,  Oh,  Job,  stand  still  and  consider  the  won¬ 
drous-works  of  God.”  Calling  his  auditor’s  attention 
in  this  familiar  way  he  now  plies  him  with  several 
questions  to  further  enforce  the  moral  truth  of  his 
former  picture.  At  the  same  time  he  will  remind  Job 
of  his  own  insignificance  and  how  limited  is  his  knowl¬ 
edge.  He  says,  » 

“Dost  thou  know  how  God  layeth  his  charge  upon 
them, 

And  causeth  the  lightning  of  his  cloud  to  shine  ? 

Dost  thou  know  the  balancings  of  the  clouds, 

The  wondrous  works  of  him  who  is  perfect  in  knowl¬ 
edge? 

How  thy  garments  are  warm, 

When  the  earth  is  still  by  reason  of  the  south  wind  ? 

Canst  thou  with  him  spread  out  the  sky, 

Which  is  strong  as  a  moulten  mirror? 

Teach  us  what  we  shall  say  unto  him; 

For  we  can  not  set  our  speech  in  order  by  reason  of 
darkness.  ’  ’ 

The  purpose  of  the  poet  in  these  verses  is  very  evi¬ 
dent.  In  the  presence  of  God ’s  wonderful  demonstra¬ 
tions,  in  the  storm  and  all  that  is  connected  with  it, 
man  is  too  insignificant  even  for  thought. 

But  incidentally  Elihu  has  mingled  with  his  moral¬ 
izing  some  fine  strokes  of  poetry.  After  the  storm 
is  over  the  sky  is  overcast  by  a  great  flood  of  golden 
light  which  seems  to  spread  out  the  sky  like  a  moulten 

[140] 


Eliliu’ s  Intervention 


mirror.  The  poet  is  so  true  a  poet  of  nature  that 
apparently  without  thinking  about  it  he  has  given 
expression  to  one  of  the  most  characteristic  phenome¬ 
na  that  follows  in  the  wake  of  a  storm. 

But  the  picture  is  not  yet  complete.  Another 
notable  change  takes  place  before  nature  becomes  quite 
tranquil.  The  brazen  firmament  gradually  softens 
into  a  white  light,  the  winds  arise  and  sweep  the 
clouds  before  them,  and  in  the  glow  of  the  evening 
sunset  the  north  is  all  aglow  with  the  red  streaks  of 
a  glorious  evening.  The  picture  closes  with  the  mag¬ 
nificent  manifestation  of  the  beauties  of  nature  in 
which  the  poet  sees  only  the  presence  of  an  allwise 
and  beneficent  Creator. 

‘  ‘  And  now  men  see  not  the  light  which  is  bright  in  the 
skies ; 

But  the  wind  passeth,  and  eleareth  them. 

Out  of  the  north  cometh  golden  splendor; 

God  hath  upon  him  terrible  majesty.” 

Elihu  now  draws  his  conclusion  in  his  own  charac¬ 
teristic  way.  In  the  power  and  beauty  of  the  storm 
he  has  vindicated  God’s  ways  with  men.  It  seems  to 
be  entirely  satisfactory  to  his  way  of  thinking. 

1  ‘  Touching  the  Almighty,  we  can  not  find  him  out : 

He  is  excellent  in  power; 

And  in  justice  and  plenteous  righteousness  he  will 
not  afflict. 

Men  do  therefore  fear  him: 

He  regardeth  not  any  that  are  wise  of  heart.” 


[141] 


The  Book  of  Job 


Elihu’s  poetry  has  helped  to  give  dignity  to  his 
discourse.  But  in  achieving  the  purpose  for  which  he 
used  it,  it  must  he  admitted  that  he  is  as  far  from 
his  goal  as  he  was  when  he  espoused  the  muse.  If 
any  conclusions  can  be  drawn  from  his  long  speech 
it  must  he  something  like  this :  God  is  past  our  under¬ 
standing.  He  is  all  powerful,  all  wise,  and  all  just. 
His  ways  are  right,  and  it  is  the  duty  of  man  to  accept 
what  God  sends  without  murmuring  and  without  ques¬ 
tioning.  Man  is  so  insignificant  in  his  sight  that  he 
should  not  look  for  an  explanation  of  God’s  provi¬ 
dence.  It  is  therefore  not  for  man  to  understand 
Jehovah  but  to  fear  and  tremble  before  him. 


[142] 


ACT  V 


The  Reconciliation 

Chapters  XXXYIII  -  XLII :  1-6 

IN  THE  long  discussions  through  which  we  have 
wandered,  many  tangled  threads  have  been  left 
unentangled.  We  have  seen  one  question  after 
another  raised  and  discussed,  sometimes  with  vehe¬ 
mence,  only  at  last  to  be  laid  aside  unsolved.  Job’s 
relation  to  his  friends  and  the  cause  of  his  suffering 
are  still  enveloped  in  as  deep  mystery  as  at  the 
beginning.  His  reconciliation  with  God,  the  terrible 
doubt  and  gloom  into  which  he  has  been  hurled, 
God’s  withdrawal  and  seeming  refusal  to  hear  him, 
are  still  enshrouded  in  the  deepest  gloom.  The 
vindication  of  God’s  ways  with  men,  his  mysterious 
providence  in  the  government  of  the  world,  are  as 
yet  unaccounted  for. 

All  this  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  the  most  earnest 
and  sincere  efforts  have  been  made,  both  on  the  part 
of  Job  and  of  his  comforters,  to  penetrate  the  deep 
things  of  God.  In  their  quest  for  solution  they  have 
scaled  the  heights  of  wisdom,  explored  the  depths 
of  experience,  appealed  to  the  teaching  of  nature  and 
have  even  undertaken  an  explanation  of  the  mys¬ 
teries  of  divine  Providence.  They  have  reasoned  and 
argued.  They  have  philosophized  and  dreamed.  They 


[143] 


The  Book  of  Job 


have  dogmatized  and  prophesied.  Yet  in  the  end 
they  have  all  been  baffled  and  their  theories  have 
led  to  no  satisfactory  solution  of  the  problems  dis¬ 
cussed. 

But  we  should  not  for  a  moment  think  that  the 
writer  of  the  drama  has  lost  his  way  or  does  not 
know  what  he  is  about.  All  the  delay  and  uncer¬ 
tainty  in  the  discussion  has  been  purposed.  The 
great  motive  of  the  poem  rests  in  the  fact  that  men  in 
their  own  wisdom  do  not  understand  God.  The 
author  of  the  poem  has  permitted  each  of  the  dis¬ 
putants  to  go  the  full  length  of  his  ability  in  trying 
to  solve  the  deep  mystery  of  God’s  providence  to 
men.  In  his  own  way  each  has  come  of  his  own 
accord,  as  it  were,  face  to  face  with  a  blank  wall 
beyond  which  there  is  no  light.  This  situation  has 
prepared  the  way  for  the  final  solution.  The  voice 
of  Jehovah  speaking  from  the  whirlwind  is  necessary 
to  lift  the  veil  of  obscurity  in  which  the  whole  is 
enveloped. 

When  the  reader  becomes  conscious  of  this  fact, 
that  now  Jehovah  is  to  speak  in  his  own  person,  it  is 
very  easy  for  him  to  be  disappointed  in  the  reply 
from  the  whirlwind.  We  naturally  think  that  the 
omniscient  God  will  at  once  clear  up  all  mystery  by 
a  deep  and  wonderful  revelation  of  the  mysterious 
forces  of  the  unseen  world.  We  look  for  the  explana¬ 
tion  of  spiritual  forces  which  are  beyond  the  under¬ 
standing  of  our  finite  minds.  But  the  voice  from 
the  whirlwind  undertakes  no  such  revelation.  On  the 
contrary  it  deals  with  the  very  common  things  in  the 


[144] 


The  Reconciliation 


world  of  nature  around  us.  There  is  no  special 
revelation  here  at  all.  In  fact  there  is  no  revelation 
beyond  what  a  man  of  average  intelligence  would  he 
able  to  see  with  his  own  eyes  and  understand  with 
his  own  heart  without  assistance  if  he  would  but 
focus  his  attention  in  the  right  way  upon  the  proper 
objects.  The  simplicity  of  the  revelation  from  the 
whirlwind  surprises  us,  and  yet  the  more  we  con¬ 
template  it  the  more  conscious  we  become  of  the  deep 
and  fundamental  religious  truth  that  it  embodies. 

Jehovah’s  answer  is  to  Job  alone,  but  the  answer 
is  suited  to  the  comprehension  of  every  other  person 
as  well  as  Job,  and  is  directed  to  the  understanding, 
to  the  intelligence.  Job  is  commanded  to  summon 
his  faculties,  to  stand  up  like  a  man,  to  think  with  all 
his  heart  and  mind,  to  think  through  nature  to 
nature’s  God,  and  see  in  all  the  common  manifesta¬ 
tions  of  nature  the  handiwork  of  divine  Majesty. 

1 1  Who  is  this  that  darkeneth  counsel 
By  words  without  knowledge?” 

Jehovah  demands  of  him.  There  has  been  much  un¬ 
wisdom  spoken  in  the  past  discussion.  Real  wisdom 
is  now  to  be  revealed,  but  not  through  the  divine 
voice,  except  as  this  directs  the  eye  to  see,  but  as  it 
appears  in  the  manifest  handiwork  of  God  in  the 
visible  world  all  around  us.  The  divine  revelation 
to  which  we  finally  come,  then,  is  the  religious  teach¬ 
ing  of  nature.  How  simple  and  yet  how  natural 
does  this  all  seem,  and  at  the  same  time  how 

[145] 


The  Book  of  Job 

conclusive,  how  wonderful  and  beautiful  in  its  sim¬ 
plicity. 

First  Job  is  pointed  to  the  acts  of  creation  and 
to  the  phenomena  of  nature  with  a  request  that, 
since  he  has  presumed  to  know  a  good  many  things 
in  the  past  discussion,  he  explain  them.  With  care¬ 
ful,  diligent  search  into  the  mysteries  of  the  creative 
act  and  into  the  intricate  maze  of  natural  phenomena 
Job  is  bidden  to  look.  Here  the  hand  of  God  is  at 
work.  Here  the  discerning  soul  will  find  food  for 
meditation  and  serious  thought,  and  the  more  he 
broods  over  it,  and  the  deeper  he  is  able  to  fathom 
its  mystery,  the  closer  will  he  be  led  to  the  Author 
of  all  nature.  So  Job  is  led  to  discover  for  himself 
the  deep  truths  that  he  has  been  searching  for  in 
vain,  with  all  sincerity  and  with  all  earnestness,  but 
was  unable  to  find  because  there  was  no  leading  hand 
to  guide  him  to  the  goal  of  his  quest.  The  different 
creative  acts  and  the  varied  phases  of  natural 
phenomena  are  presented  in  the  form  of  interroga¬ 
tories.  Job  is  bidden  to  contemplate  them,  to  explain 
their  meaning,  their  purpose  or  their  origin.  The 
method  amounts  to  a  sort  of  reductio  ad  absurdum, 
in  which  the  answer  to  the  question  proposed  by  the 
voice  is  inevitably  and  invariably  the  same :  God. 

The  voice  begins, 

“ Where  wast  thou  when  I  laid  the  foundations  of 
the  earth? 

Declare  if  thou  hast  understanding. 

[146] 


The  Reconciliation 


Who  determined  the  measures  thereof,  if  thou 
knowest  ? 

Or  who  stretched  the  line  upon  it? 

Whereupon  were  the  foundations  thereof  fastened? 

Or  who  laid  the  cornerstone  thereof?” 

The  answer  to  all  these  questions  is  self-evident.  In 
that  far  away  morning  of  the  world  when  God  laid 
the  foundations  of  the  earth,  when  the  morning 
stars  sang  together  and  all  the  sons  of  God  shouted 
for  joy,  where  was  Job ?  yes,  where?  And  as  to  the 
other  question,  Who  determined  the  measure  of  the 
earth,  and  who  gave  it  its  dimensions,  who  laid  the 
cornerstone  of  it,  and  who  made  sure  its  foundation  ? 
the  answer  is  inevitable ;  God. 

Who  was  it  in  that  first  morning  of  creation  when 
the  earth  came  forth  a  molten  mass,  fresh  from  the 
womb  of  Chaos,  that  confined  its  liquid  substance  in 
its  place?  And  how  were  the  vaporous  clouds  en¬ 
abled  to  soar  off  into  space  as  a  garment  of  the  earth  ? 
Who  set  the  bounds  of  these  various  forms  of  sub¬ 
stance,  and  who  decreed  the  law,  “Thus  far  shalt 
thou  go  and  no  further?”  God. 

Again  the  voice  demands,  Have  you  brought  forth 
the  morning  since  you  have  lived  upon  the  earth? 
Have  you  unrolled  the  dawn  as  a  great  blanket, 
shaking,  as  it  were,  the  dust  and  debris  out  of  the 
lap  of  nature?  Have  you  commanded  the  earth, 
placed  your  impress  upon  it  as  a  die  in  the  clay,  or 
molded  it  to  your  use  as  a  garment?  Have  you  pene¬ 
trated  into  its  dark  mysteries  and  seen  what  is  beyond 


[147] 


The  Book  of  Job 

the  grave  ?  Have  yon  snatched  a  created  world 
out  of  the  hand  of  the  Creator  and  stamped  upon  it 
the  image  of  your  own  personality  ?  Whose  power  is 
this  in  the  presence  of  which  yon  stand  dumb  and 
impotent  ?  There  is  only  one  answer :  God. 

Have  you  explored  the  mysteries  of  the  sea?  Have 
you  searched  out  the  bowels  of  the  earth?  Do  you 
know  what  is  beyond  the  gates  of  death?  Have  you 
seen  into  the  mysteries  of  the  world  beyond?  Do 
you  know  the  measure  of  the  earth  ?  Can  you  under¬ 
stand  its  scope  and  breadth?  How  do  you  explain 
these  mysteries?  The  only  answer  is :  God. 

Do  you  know  where  light  dwells,  where  it  has  its 
origin?  Where  is  the  abode  of  darkness?  Can  you 
explore  the  bounds  of  it?  From  your  former  state¬ 
ments  you  must  know  these  things  for  you  are  very 
old  and  the  number  of  your  days  is  very  great.  Do 
you  understand  how  snow  is  formed?  Can  you  ex¬ 
plain  the  mysteries  of  the  hail  ?  How  do  you  account 
for  the  mysteries  of  light  and  darkness,  of  hailstone 
and  snowflake?  There  is  but  one  answer;  God. 

Who  has  determined  the  channel  for  the  flood  of 
waters,  or  made  a  way  for  the  lightning  and  thun¬ 
der?  Who  has  led  the  clouds  to  deposit  their 
showers  on  uninhabited  lands,  or  on  the  wilderness 
unknown  to  man?  Who  has  caused  the  tender  grass 
to  spring  up  ?  Who  has  brought  forth  the  dew-drops 
and  the  rain?  Whence  come  the  ice  and  the  hoar¬ 
frost?  Who  causes  the  wTaters  to  freeze  over  and 
become  solid  like  stone?  Who  brings  these  things 
forth  ?  God. 


[148] 


The  Reconciliation 


Can  you  set  clusters  of  stars  in  the  skies  like  the 
Pleiades  ?  Or  loose  the  bands  of  Orion  ?  Can  you  lead 
forth  the  Zodiac  with  its  signs  and  their  seasons,  and 
cause  the  Great  Bear  to  move  in  his  yearly  round 
about  the  pole?  Do  you  understand  the  laws  by 
which  the  heavens  are  ruled,  and  can  you  establish 
these  laws  upon  the  earth?  Whose  laws  are  these? 
God’s. 

Can  you  command  the  clouds  so  that  they  give 
forth  their  water  at  your  request?  Can  you  control 
the  lightning  and  cause  it  to  strike  here  or  there  as 
you  may  direct?  Ah,  who  can  understand  the  mys¬ 
terious  forces  that  govern  in  the  world  of  nature 
about  us,  and  who  can  explain  the  mysterious  opera¬ 
tions  of  the  mind  and  show  how  it  knows  and 
judges !  Who  can  explain  the  processes  by  which  the 
clouds  give  forth  their  waters  as  from  bottles  in 
heaven  when  the  earth  is  parched  and  covered  with 
dust,  or  formed  into  the  hard  clods  of  the  valley? 
Only  God. 

The  omnipotent  hand  that  brings  these  changes  of 
season,  the  variation  of  cloud,  sunshine  and  shower, 
heat  and  cold,  the  conditions  that  produce  our  crops 
and  make  possible  life  as  we  know  it  upon  the  earth, 
is  it  not  the  good  hand  of  an  all-wise  providence 
that  has  created  the  earth  and  the  worlds  and  that 
governs  all  according  to  a  well  regulated  plan? 
Should  not  man  therefore  who  is  the  chief  beneficiary 
of  all  this  wise  providence  honor  and  revere  God  and 
trust  him  completely  in  all  things? 

But  the  voice  from  the  whirlwind  continues,  and 


[149] 


The  Book  of  Job 


directs  the  thought  of  Job  now  to  a  consideration 
of  the  animal  life  which  he  knows.  He  is  asked  to 
consider  the  various  creatures  with  reference  to  their 
instinctive  natures,  and  is  again  put  upon  his  metal 
to  endeavor  with  all  his  intelligence  to  trace  in  the 
various  animal  forms  the  peculiarities  of  habit,  dis¬ 
position,  and  instinct,  with  which  they  are  endowed. 

‘  ‘  Cans ’t  thou  hunt  the  prey  for  the  lioness, 

Or  satisfy  the  appetite  of  the  young  lions, 
When  they  couch  in  their  dens, 

And  abide  in  the  covert  to  lie  in  wait? 

Who  provideth  for  the  raven  his  prey, 

When  his  young  ones  cry  unto  God, 

And  wander  for  lack  of  food?” 

Whence  come  the  peculiar  instincts  of  the  lion  tribe, 
their  disposition  to  crouch  in  dens,  to  lie  in  wait  and 
secretly  spring  upon  their  prey?  Whence  their 
ravenous  appetites  and  the  sagacity  with  which  they 
can  be  satiated?  Likewise  the  vultures.  Why  does 
the  lion  refuse  to  touch  a  dead  body  and  the  vulture 
make  carrion  its  only  food?  Man  is  reduced  again 
to  his  only  answer,  God. 

Can  you  explain  the  nature  of  the  wild  goats  in 
their  wild  recesses  of  the  mountains?  Do  you  under¬ 
stand  their  times  and  seasons  and  their  dispositions? 
How  is  it  that  their  little  ones  remain  with  them  for 
a  time,  then  go  away  on  their  own  initiative,  take  life 
with  all  its  dangers  into  their  own  keeping  and 
return  no  more  to  the  parental  fold?  Or  whose  hand 


[150] 


The  Reconciliation 


is  seen  in  the  disposition  of  the  wild  ass  who  makes 
his  home  in  the  wilderness  or  in  the  salt  marshes,  but 
scorns  the  city  and  the  dwelling  place  of  men,  de¬ 
lighting  in  the  freedom  of  the  mountains  and  seeks 
his  food  in  the  large  open  spaces?  Why  is  it  that 
the  wild  ox  can  not  be  domesticated?  Why  can  not 
he  be  trained  to  do  your  plowing  and  to  turn  his 
great  strength  into  useful  labor?  Whence  has  he 
derived  his  wild  untamable  instincts?  Who  has 
given  the  ostrich  its  beautiful  plumes  and  at  the  same 
time  its  nature  which  is  void  of  parental  instinct? 
How  is  it  that  it  lays  its  eggs  in  the  sand  where  wild 
beasts  may  devour  them  and  leaves  them  there  with¬ 
out  any  thought  of  care  or  responsibility?  Whence 
come  these  varied  contradictory  and  conflicting 
traits  and  natures?  Yes,  whence?  Except  that  the 
omnipotent  God  has  created  each  according  to  its 
own  disposition. 

Have  you  given  the  horse  his  strength,  have  you 
designed  his  beautiful  quivering  mane?  Have  you 
caused  him  to  leap  like  the  locust  and  to  rejoice  in 
pawing  the  earth  and  snorting  in  the  consciousness 
of  his  vigorous  life?  Have  you  given  him  his  spirit 
of  bravery  so  that  he  rejoices  in  the  clash  of  arms 
and  in  the  tumult  of  battle?  Have  you  caused  his 
heart  to  rejoice  at  the  sound  of  the  trumpet  and  to 
delight  in  carrying  his  rider  into  the  thick  of  the 
fray?  Is  it  by  your  wisdom  that  the  hawk  soars  into 
the  sky  and  takes  delight  in  bathing  her  breast  in 
the  balmy  breezes  of  the  south?  Is  it  at  your  com¬ 
mand  that  the  eagle  mounts  on  high,  builds  her  nest 


[151] 


The  Book  of  Job 


in  the  inaccessible  crags  of  the  mountain  whence  she 
looks  down  upon  the  world  of  smaller  animals  which 
she  makes  her  prey?  Are  these  the  works  of  your 
hand?  If  not,  whence  are  they?  From  one  only 
possible  source ;  God. 

Job  is  here  invited  to  recognize  his  place  in  the 
ranks  of  animate  life.  If  an  omiscient  and  omnipo¬ 
tent  God  has  created  the  various  forms  of  animal  life 
each  with  its  peculiar  instincts  and  nature,  endowed 
them  with  ability  to  care  for  themselves  and  adapt 
themselves  to  the  conditions  of  their  existence,  has 
not  this  same  God  placed  him  in  the  world  and  deter¬ 
mined  the  conditions  under  which  he  lives?  It  is  as 
if  the  voice  would  say,  “  Consider  the  ravens,  that 
they  sow  not,  neither  reap ;  which  have  no  store 
chamber  nor  barn;  and  God  feedeth  them:  of  how 
much  more  value  are  ye  than  the  birds?  ....  Con¬ 
sider  the  lilies,  how  they  grow :  they  toil  not,  neither 
do  they  spin:  yet  I  say  unto  you,  even  Solomon  in 
all  his  glory  was  not  arrayed  like  one  of  these.  But 
if  God  doth  so  clothe  the  grass  of  the  field,  which 
today  is,  and  tomorrow  is  cast  into  the  oven;  how 
much  more  will  he  clothe  you,  Oh,  ye  of  little  faith  ?  ’  ’ 
Job  has  made  rash  statements,  he  has  found  fault 
with  God’s  way  of  ruling  the  universe,  he  has  felt 
that  Jehovah  is  unjust  and  partial  in  his  treatment 
of  men.  lie  has  accused  him  of  being  indifferent  to 
the  pleadings  of  his  faithful  servants.  In  the  won¬ 
derful  vision  presented  to  him  of  the  divine  majesty 
and  power  and  glory  Job  is  invited  to  see  himself  as 
he  really  is.  If  God  created  such  a  wonderful  uni- 


[152] 


The  Reconciliation 


verse  of  earth,  sky,  clouds,  stars,  and  expansive 
space,  filled  the  earth  with  creatures  strong,  beauti¬ 
ful,  swift,  agile,  cunning,  dexterous,  each  fulfilling 
its  mission  in  the  great  world  in  its  own  way,  is  it 
not  natural  that  Job  should  see  himself  as  a  part  of 
this  great  plan?  Having  contemplated  this  wonder¬ 
ful  panorama  unrolled  as  it  were  before  his  vision, 
he  is  now  asked  to  express  himself  in  regard  to  it. 
“What  has  now  the  caviler  to  say,”  the  one  who 
would  contend  with  the  Almighty?  If  he  is  dis¬ 
posed  to  argue  with  God  and  question  his  ways  of 
ruling  the  world,  let  him  speak. 

“Behold  I  am  of  small  account:  what  shall  I  answer 
thee  ? 

I  lay  my  hand  upon  my  mouth. 

Once  have  I  spoken  and  I  will  not  answer ; 

Yea,  twice,  but  I  will  proceed  no  further.” 

Job  is  not  yet  fully  reconciled.  The  interrogatories 
applied  to  him  have  almost  overwhelmed  him.  The 
majesty  of  Jehovah’s  works  are  too  wonderful  for 
him  to  grasp.  His  mind  is  confused,  his  heart  is 
dazed,  he  stands  as  it  were  in  the  presence  of  a 
Majesty  so  dazzling  in  its  brightness  that  his  senses 
are  confused.  He  can  give  no  conclusive  answer,  he 
hesitates,  is  uncertain,  declines  to  commit  himself. 
He  must  have  time  to  collect  his  faculties  and  to 
order  his  thought. 

Further  evidence  is  therefore  vouchsafed  him. 
Job  does  not  yet  understand  his  relation  to  the 

[153] 


The  Book  of  Job 


divine  plan.  His  attention  is  called  to  two  of  the 
largest  of  God’s  creatures,  and  their  size  and  strength 
are  the  features  particularly  emphasized.  He  has  not 
yet  perceived  the  divine  hand  in  their  remarkable 
structure.  His  conventional  conceptions  of  God  he 
has  not  been  able  to  adjust  to  the  wonderful  revela¬ 
tion  of  God  in  nature.  While  the  scene  that  follows 
does  not  rise  to  the  high  level  of  poetic  beauty  and 
grandeur  of  the  former  scenes,  it  may  be  purposely 
made  more  concrete  and  realistic  for  the  purpose  of 
meeting  more  fully  Job’s  power  of  comprehension. 
Speaking  again  from  the  whirlwind,  Jehovah  de¬ 
mands  of  Job  : 

“Gird  up  thy  loins  now  like  a  man; 

I  will  demand  of  thee  and  declare  thou  unto  me. 

Wilt  thou  condemn  me  that  thou  mayest  be  justi¬ 
fied? 

Or  hast  thou  an  arm  like  God? 

And  canst  thou  thunder  with  a  voice  like  him?” 

1  Consider  now  Behemoth,  the  hippopotamus,  one  of 
the  creatures  which  I  made  along  with  yourself. 
Behold  his  strength  and  the  powerful  muscles  of  his 
body.  He  moves  about  like  a  force  of  nature.  His 
legs  are  like  rods  of  iron,  and  his  bones  like  tubes 
of  brass.  He  is  the  strongest  of  all  my  creatures, 
but  I  gave  him  all  the  strength  he  has.  He  goes 
forth  among  the  beasts  of  the  field  as  king  among 
them.  He  lives  upon  the  grass  and  the  flowers  of  the 
field,  hides  in  the  thicket  of  the  river’s  brink,  and  no 


[154] 


The  Reconciliation 


matter  what  comes,  whether  the  wild  beast,  the  flood 
of  rushing  waters,  or  the  terrors  of  a  frowning  world, 
he  is  undismayed,  unterrified.  So  likewise  the 
leviathan,  the  crocodile.  Would  you  like  to  have 
him  for  a  pet,  for  the  amusement  of  your  children? 
Do  you  understand  his  fierce  nature,  that  he  can  not 
be  taken  alive?  Have  you  observed  the  wonderful 
structure  of  his  form?  Have  you  considered  the 
terrors  of  his  teeth  and  his  marvelous  capacity  to 
devour  all  his  enemies?  Have  you  noted  the  strong 
scales  of  his  back,  so  closely  laid  upon  one  another 
that  not  even  the  air  can  penetrate  between  them? 
So  invulnerable  is  he  that  sword  or  spear  or  dart  or 
pointed  staff  are  but  the  sport  of  winds  applied  to 
him.  ’ 

“He  counteth  iron  as  straw, 

And  brass  as  rotten  wood.  .  . 

He  beholdeth  everything  that  is  high ; 

He  is  king  over  all  the  sons  of  pride.” 

The  world  is  full  of  great  and  wonderful  and 
beautiful  creatures  that  God  has  made.  Each  in  its 
own  way  is  directed  and  animated  by  the  particular 
instincts  and  character  with  which  God  has  endowed 
it.  Each  according  to  its  nature  serves  the  purpose 
of  its  creation  and  reflects  the  wisdom  and  power  of 
an  omnipotent  God.  But  man  is  the  crowning 
achievement  of  the  entire  creative  process.  He  was 
bidden  to  occupy  the  earth  and  subdue  it.  All 
things  were  put  under  his  feet.  He  is  endowed  with 
a  personality  and  a  divine  spirit  which  belong  to 


[155] 


The  Book  of  J oh 


none  of  the  others  of  God’s  creatures.  He  can  there¬ 
fore  not  realize  the  lofty  purpose  of  his  creation  by 
being  a  mere  animal.  His  soul  powers  must  find  ex¬ 
pression.  He  is  of  the  earth,  but  he  is  also  of  heaven ; 
he  has  an  affinity  with  God. 

As  the  wonderful  panorama  of  the  universe  is 
gradually  unrolled  before  Job  and  he  understands 
its  meaning,  he  becomes  able  to  see  his  weakness 
in  comparison  with  God’s  strength,  his  finiteness  in 
comparison  with  God’s  infinity,  his  ignorance  in  com¬ 
parison  with  God’s  omniscience.  And  this  leads 
the  way  to  reconciliation.  As  he  grows  more  and 
more  into  an  understanding  of  God’s  dealings  with 
him  he  becomes  more  conscious  of  His  near  pres¬ 
ence,  and  realizes  that  He  was  not  so  far  away  as  he 
had  thought.  God  becomes  precious  and  near  to  him, 
and  he  realizes  that  in  his  hasty  words  he  had 
spoken  unjustly.  Yet  in  it  all  he  had  been  honest  at 
heart,  had  expressed  what  seemed  to  him  to  be  the 
absolute  truth,  but  for  want  of  wisdom  he  was  in 
many  things  mistaken.  Now  he  is  willing  to  bow  his 
head  and  cover  his  face  in  the  presence  of  the  good 
and  great  and  righteous  God  who  has  dealt  so  patiently 
with  him.  Then  Job  answered  Jehovah  and  said, 

“I  know  that  thou  canst  do  all  things, 

And  that  no  purpose  of  thine  can  be  restrained. 

Who  is  this  that  hideth  counsel  without  knowl¬ 
edge? 

Therefore  have  I  uttered  that  which  I  understood 
not, 


[156] 


The  Reconciliation 

Things  too  wonderful  for  me  which  I  knew  not. 

Hear,  I  beseech  thee,  and  I  will  speak ; 

I  will  demand  of  thee  and  declare  thou  unto  me. 

I  had  heard  of  thee  by  the  hearing  of  the  ear ; 

But  now  mine  eye  seeth  thee ; 

Wherefore  I  abhor  myself, 

And  repent  in  dust  and  ashes.” 

God  can  do  all  things;  his  wonderful  works  in 
earth,  sky,  and  heaven,  his  marvelous  creatures  upon 
the  earth  are  a  testimony  of  his  greatness.  God  is 
not  only  the  Author  of  a  great  physical  universe  but 
also  of  settled  traits  of  character,  intuitions,  mental 
and  spiritual  powers,  longings,  aspirations,  hopes  and 
fears.  Job’s  mind  now  can  sweep  the  universe  and 
see  in  all  its  phases  the  handiwork  of  an  omnipotent 
and  onmiseient  God. 

In  comparison  with  this  he  sees  himself  in  his 
ignorance,  limitations,  and  short-sightedness.  “Who 
is  this  that  hideth  counsel  without  knowledge?”  he 
asks.  It  is  himself,  in  his  endeavor  to  understand 
God  through  the  agency  of  a  traditional  religion. 
No  wonder  he  uttered  what  he  did  not  understand, 
things  too  wonderful  for  him  which  he  knew  not.  He 
needed  to  be  brought  face  to  face  with  God  in  nature, 
to  see  his  hand  in  the  government  of  the  world,  and 
to  read  his  thoughts  in  the  intricate  designs  of  a 
boundless  universe. 

His  knowledge  of  God  had  been  by  the  hearing  of 
the  ear,  men’s  opinions;  theories  derived  from  partial 
views  of  his  providence.  Various  views  of  this  kind 


[157] 


The  Book  of  Job 


had  been  insistently  urged  by  Job’s  comforters. 
Theories  of  religion  these  were,  based  on  experience, 
observation,  tradition,  ancient  wisdom,  the  teachings 
of  the  philosophers  and  mystics.  Job,  while  differing 
in  some  respects  from  his  protagonists,  nevertheless 
had  the  traditional  idea  of  God’s  government  of  the 
world.  But  now  his  eyes  are  opened.  He  can  see 
God,  not  in  bodily  form  of  course,  but  a  vision  of  his 
divine  Majesty  is  present  before  his  soul.  He  has 
been  lifted  up  to  that  new  world  of  divine  provi¬ 
dence  in  which  all  creatures  move  and  have  their 
being.  God  appears  to  him  as  a  great  Caretaker, 
interested  in  all  his  creatures,  directing  all  things  to 
his  honor  and  glory  and  for  the  full  working  out  of 
the  highest  destiny  of  every  creature.  God  has  be¬ 
come  a  majestic  Providence  in  which  the  deepest 
yearnings  of  the  soul  as  well  as  its  highest  aspirations 
are  satisfied.  Job’s  soul  is  at  peace  in  the  restful 
assurance  of  having  come  into  a  reconciled  relation¬ 
ship  with  the  omnipotent  God  whom  he  had  so  earn¬ 
estly  sought.  His  true  soul  melts  in  sincere  adora¬ 
tion  before  divine  Majesty.  His  attitude  is  only 
worship,  adoration,  love,  repentance.  But  Job  makes 
no  confession  of  sin,  he  does  not  need  to.  He  has 
been  at  fault  only  through  ignorance  and  rashness. 
He  humbly  and  sincerely  confesses  his  faults,  for 
his  heart  has  always  been  right.  He  feels  exceed¬ 
ingly  small  in  the  presence  of  the  infinite  God.  He 
has  found  the  true  relationship  with  his  Maker.  Now 
that  he  is  reconciled,  the  question  of  his  integrity 
is  not  raised.  He  has  acquired  something  even  better 


[158] 


The  Reconciliation 


than  the  vindication  of  his  integrity,  something 
which,  in  a  way,  also  comprehends  that,  —  he  has 
found  peace  of  soul.  He  has  found  sweet  communion 
with  the  divine  Spirit.  He  understands  God’s  ways 
with  man,  and  appreciates  Him  as  the  God  and 
Author  of  the  universe.  And  this  is  as  full  a  revela¬ 
tion  as  could  be  vouchsafed  him  before  the  coming 
of  the  Messiah. 


[159J 


The  Epilogue 

Chapter  XLII :  7  —  17 


WITH  JOB’S  confession  and  reconciliation  the 
drama  properly  ends,  and  there  may  he  a 
question  as  to  the  propriety  of  an  epilogue.  His 
spiritual  triumph  is  the  object  to  which  we  have  been 
looking  through  the  entire  play,  and  it  must  be  con¬ 
fessed  that  when  this  is  achieved,  to  go  back  to  a 
consideration  of  Job  in  the  light  of  his  temporal 
prosperity  does  not  exalt  the  theme.  Yet  the  world 
in  Job’s  day  was  practical  and  looked  to  practical 
ends  as  it  does  in  our  day.  In  fact  Job’s  spiritual 
victory,  while  it  is  the  true  goal  of  the  motive  that 
rules  the  drama  and  therefore  the  artistic  conclusion 
of  the  development,  leaves  inconclusive  certain  prac¬ 
tical  considerations  that  need  to  be  reckoned  with, 
and  this  fact  makes  some  sort  of  later  consideration 
necessary. 

In  the  first  place  our  sense  of  poetic  justice  de¬ 
mands  that  certain  things  be  considered  further. 
Job’s  relation  to  his  three  friends  is  still  a  matter 
in  question.  That  matter  has  been  in  the  foreground 
of  the  discussion  all  through  the  play.  They  have 
taken  the  attitude  of  vindicating  the  good  name  of 
Jehovah,  and  in  their  way  and  according  to  their 
vision,  each  has  honestly  tried  to  do  this.  How  their 


[160] 


The  Epilogue 

views  have  clashed  wfith  those  of  Job  we  have  seen 
in  each  act.  Job’s  spiritual  triumph  and  reconcilia¬ 
tion  with  God  still  leaves  the  friends  out  of  the 
reckoning.  It  is  not  until  Jehovah  addresses  himself 
to  Eliphaz,  their  leader,  that  we  are  finally  and 
authoritatively  informed  as  to  how  God  has  looked 
upon  their  ministrations.  Here  we  get  a  general 
view  of  the  entire  controversy  as  seen  from  God’s 
standpoint.  “Ye  have  not  spoken  of  me  the  things 
that  are  right,  as  my  servant  Job  hath,”  God  said  to 
Eliphaz,  and  before  God  would  accept  him  and  his 
companions  he  required  the  intercession  of  Job  in 
their  behalf. 

It  therefore  requires  the  epilogue  to  understand 
the  complete  vindication  of  Job.  God  has  not  only 
accepted  him  but  he  has  also  made  him  a  mediary 
between  himself  and  the  three  friends.  In  doing  this 
he  has  honored  Job  above  any  honor  he  enjoyed  in 
his  former  prosperity.  There  we  saw  him  as  a  patri¬ 
arch,  ministering  in  religion  it  is  true,  but  only  as 
the  head  of  his  clan.  Now  God  has  constituted  him  a 
priest  and  made  him  an  intercessor  for  those  who 
had  caused  him  distress ;  and  this  seems  to  have  been 
reserved  as  the  final  triumph  in  both  the  spiritual 
and  practical  sense  of  Job’s  spiritual  victory.  Ob¬ 
serve  that  “Jehovah  turned  the  captivity  of  Job 
when  he  prayed  for  his  friends.”  It  seems  that  this 
relationship  of  the  four  leading  characters  of  the 
drama  constitutes  the  significant  triumph  of  the  en¬ 
tire  dramatic  action.  Job  has  not  only  won  out  in  his 
own  spiritual  struggles,  but  that  has  capacitated  him 


[161] 


The  Book  of  Job 


for  mediatorial  service  that  is  even  prophetic  of  the 
Messiah  that  was  to  come. 

The  final  picture  of  Job’s  later  prosperity  is 
coupled  in  purpose  with  his  final  spiritual  triumph 
with  God  and  with  his  friends.  The  statement  that 
“ Jehovah  gave  Job  twice  as  much  as  he  had  before” 
is  part  of  the  same  declaration  that  proclaimed  his 
complete  spiritual  victory.  To  see  Job  in  his  later 
years  receiving  his  friends  and  being  received  by 
them,  their  feasting  together  and  their  presentation 
of  gifts  to  him,  his  multiplied  flocks  of  camels  and 
oxen  and  sheep,  with  another  splendid  family  of 
seven  sons  and  three  daughters,  the  like  of  whom 
were  not  to  be  found  anywhere,  and  the  generous 
provision  for  inheritance  accepted  by  the  patriarch, 
and  his  last  long  years  of  peace,  prosperity  and 
plenty  among  his  descendants  for  four  generations, — 
this  is  a  satisfying  concrete  picture  of  the  reward  of 
fidelity  that  commends  itself  to  the  practical  sense 
of  our  day  as  it  did  to  that  of  Job. 


[162] 


THE  SONG  OF  SOLOMON 


The  Song  of  Songs,  Which  is 
Solomon’s 

Introduction 


THE  FIRST  verse  of  the  poem  is  its  title;  and  it 
invites  comparison  with  other  famous  songs  of 
the  Bible,  as  the  song  of  Miriam  after  crossing  the 
Red  Sea  and  seeing  the  pursuing  Egyptians  over¬ 
whelmed  in  its  waves ;  or  the  song  of  Moses  when  at 
God’s  command  he  turned  over  his  commission  to 
Joshua  as  leader  of  God’s  people  and  gave  them  his 
final  words  of  encouragement  and  instruction;  or 
the  song  of  Deborah  when  she  and  Barak  had  led 
their  people  to  a  successful  triumph  over  the  hordes 
of  Midian.  But  this  is  the  song  of  songs,  the  greatest 
of  all  the  songs,  and  it  is  Solomon’s. 

Just  the  kind  of  relationship  the  song  bears  to 
Solomon  is  not  altogether  clear.  It  may  be  Solomon’s 
song  in  the  sense  of  his  being  the  author  of  it,  or  it 
may  be  in  the  sense  that  he  is  the  subject  of  the 
story.  It  is  generally  conceded  that  the  poem  is  the 
product  of  the  age  of  Solomon.  If  this  is  true  there  is 
little  doubt  that  Solomon  is  both  the  author  of  the 
poem  and  likewise  its  subject.  This  means  that  in 
composing  the  song  Solomon  gives  a  personal  record 
of  his  courtship  of  the  Shulammite  maiden.  All  things 
considered,  this  is  the  most  probable  and  most  nat¬ 
ural  view  to  take  of  the  poem. 


[165] 


The  Song  of  Solomon 


Several  things  point  to  this  conclusion.  The  song 
was  evidently  composed  in  a  period  of  peace  and 
good  feeling.  It  reflects  a  condition  of  general  satis¬ 
faction  and  prosperity  like  that  which  prevailed  in 
the  early  part  of  Solomon’s  reign.  And  there  were 
very  few  periods  in  all  the  later  years  of  the  mon¬ 
archy  that  would  reflect  the  tranquil  spirit  of  the 
poem. 

It  belongs  also  to  a  time  of  true  religious  ideals  of 
which  the  age  of  Solomon  is  the  best  representative 
in  Israelitish  history.  The  religious  sentiment  of  the 
poem  is  in  accord  with  such  motives  as  led  the  young 
King  to  Gibeon  in  the  early  years  of  his  reign.  It  is 
infused  with  a  spirit  of  singular  nobility  of  thought 
and  purity  of  sentiment. 

The  numerous  nature  references  are  also  in  keep¬ 
ing  with  the  record  of  Solomon’s  interest  in  these 
things,  as  given  in  First  Kings  4 :  33.  The  names  of 
eighteen  plants  have  been  noted  in  the  short  poem, 
and  thirteen  animals.  Place  references  are  likewise 
frequent,  as  mountains,  cities,  plains,  rivers,  pasture 
regions,  and  many  of  them  definitely  localized  by 
reference  to  the  plants  and  animals  found  there. 
Frequent  reference  is  also  made  to  spices,  perfumes, 
and  aromatic  herbs,  such  as  formed  an  important 
element  of  the  commerce  of  Solomon’s  age.  All  of 
these  references  point  unerringly  to  the  age  of  Solo¬ 
mon  as  the  time  of  the  poem  and  to  the  king  himself 
as  its  author. 

The  work  is  dramatic  in  form,  as  is  shown  bjf  the 
fact  that  all  of  the  language  is  spoken.  It  is  a  direct 


[166] 


Introduction 


utterance  of  one  or  another  of  the  characters  in  the 
play.  Just  who  the  speaker  is  on  every  occasion  may 
not  always  be  beyond  question,  as  the  speakers  are 
nowhere  named  and  the  parts  are  not  assigned. 
There  is  a  certain  difficulty,  therefore,  in  the  inter¬ 
pretation,  and  various  methods  of  resolving  the 
meaning  of  the  poem  have  been  employed.  It  is 
possible  to  conceive  of  a  tolerably  elaborate  cast  of 
characters  and  a  complex  machinery  of  plot.  But 
this  is  not  at  all  necessary.  The  method  of  inter¬ 
pretation  here  used  is  simple  and  natural.  King 
Solomon,  the  royal  wooer,  frequently  referred  to  as 
a  shepherd,  the  royal  Shepherd  of  Israel ;  the  Shulam- 
mite  maiden,  the  object  of  his  affection,  designated  the 
bride;  a  chorus  of  young  ladies,  the  daughters  of 
Jerusalem;  a  group  of  citizens  of  Jerusalem;  and  the 
brothers  of  the  bride ;  —  these  are  all  the  characters 
necessary  to  account  adequately  for  all  the  incidents 
of  the  story.  And  our  interpretation  is  based  on  the 
assumption  that  this  is  the  proper  dramatis  per¬ 
sonae  of  the  play. 

From  early  times  it  has  been  customary  among 
Jewish  interpreters  to  read  an  allegorical  meaning 
into  the  poem.  They  have  seen  in  the  king  a  type 
of  Jehovah.  In  his  ardent  wooing  is  reflected  the 
earnest  spirit  of  God  in  behalf  of  his  own.  The  bride 
symbolizes  the  Jewish  church.  Her  beauty  and  spot¬ 
less  purity  are  types  of  that  spiritual  perfection 
which  was  the  ideal  of  the  faithful  in  Israel.  And 
their  union  is  the  consummation  of  the  spiritual  king¬ 
dom  in  this  world. 


[167] 


The  Song  of  Solomon 


Christian  scholars  have,  as  a  rule,  accepted  this 
interpretation  as  applying  to  the  ancient  conditions 
under  which  the  poem  was  written,  but  extend  the 
meaning  to  apply  in  our  day  to  the  church  of  Jesus 
Christ.  This  view  finds  support  in  the  visions  of  the 
writer  of  the  Apocalypse,  in  which  the  Christian 
church  is  presented  as  a  bride,  the  wife  of  the  Lamb 
of  God.  The  personification  in  the  two  instances  re¬ 
semble  each  other,  and  this  interpretation  has  gener¬ 
ally  been  accepted. 

It  should  be  pointed  out,  however,  that  in  the  poem 
itself  there  is  no  hint  whatever  of  such  an  allegorical 
meaning.  But  the  poem  has  frequently  been  spoken 
of  as  the  Apocalypse  of  the  Old  Testament.  As  the 
Apocalypse  of  the  New  consists  largely  of  visions, 
figures,  images,  in  almost  confusing  splendor,  if  the 
song  holds  a  similar  relation  to  the  Old  Testament,  it 
is  natural  to  think  of  it  as  likewise  rich  in  imagery 
and  Apocalyptic  figures. 

Our  interpretation  has  left  this  allegorical  feature 
entirely  out  of  the  question.  The  story  is  sufficiently 
beautiful,  sweet,  and  noble  in  itself  to  deserve  a  place 
in  the  sacred  canon  without  any  allegorical  signifi¬ 
cance.  The  splendid  vision  of  life,  the  fine  presenta¬ 
tion  of  character,  the  beautiful  sentiment,  and  the 
lofty  motive  that  dominates  the  song  —  all  invest  it 
with  a  tone  of  moral  worth  that  stamp  it  with  the 
quality  of  immortality. 


[168] 


SCENE  I  1 :2  -  2 :7 


Royal  Love  Making 

WE  ARE  to  suppose  that  King  Solomon,  in  the 
early  part  of  his  reign,  is  on  a  camping  expedi¬ 
tion  in  the  beautiful  valley  of  Jezreel  with  a  company 
from  the  royal  household.  The  season  is  the  spring 
of  the  year  when  the  landscape  is  covered  with 
flowers  and  when  all  nature  is  at  its  best.  The  royal 
pavilion  has  been  spread  in  the  valley  and  is  in  the 
keeping  of  a  group  of  maidens  who  perform  the 
Chorus  of  the  play.  King  Solomon  has  been  roving 
about  the  country  on  foot  and  has  met  with  a  beauti¬ 
ful  young  girl  of  the  neighborhood  with  whom  he  has 
fallen  violently  in  love.  He  has  visited  her  in  her 
cottage  home,  as  we  shall  see  later,  and  by  the  time 
the  dramatic  action  begins  she  has  been  brought  to 
the  royal  pavilion  in  the  valley. 

At  the  opening  of  the  first  scene  she  has  just  ar¬ 
rived  at  the  encampment  and  is  conversing  with  the 
daughters  of  Jerusalem.  The  king  for  the  time  being 
is  absent.  The  maiden  is  bashful  and  timid  and  feels 
herself  somewhat  out  of  place  in  the  midst  of  the 
royal  splendor.  The  young  ladies  of  the  Chorus 
treat  her  considerately  and  try  to  relieve  her  embar¬ 
rassment. 

They  begin  by  speaking  of  the  king  in  his  absence. 
Verses  two,  three  and  four  form  a  prologue  to  the 


[169] 


The  Song  of  Solomon 


later  action.  Evidently  there  is  a  leader  of  the 
Chorus  who  sometimes  speaks  in  her  own  behalf  and 
at  other  times  the  group  speak  in  concert.  This 
accounts  for  the  somewhat  confusing  use  of  the 
singular  and  plural  forms  of  the  pronoun.  Verses 
two  and  three  are  spoken  by  the  leader  of  the  Chorus 
about  the  absent  king,  but  the  thought  expressed  is 
applicable  to  the  entire  body.  The  extreme  frank¬ 
ness  of  the  language  used  throughout  the  play  may 
strike  us  as  unusual.  It  would  be  unusual  in  a 
sophisticated  society  like  our  own,  but  in  a  primitive 
society,  as  here  represented,  we  should  have  no  diffi¬ 
culty  in  understanding  that  people  are  likely  to  say 
about  what  they  think. 

The  Chorus  leader  begins, 

“Let  him  kiss  me  with  the  kisses  of  his  mouth; 

For  thy  love  is  better  than  wine. 

Thine  oils  have  a  goodly  fragrance; 

Thy  name  is  as  oil  poured  forth ; 

Therefore  do  the  virgins  love  thee.  ” 

There  is  doubtless  a  climax  intended  in  this  language. 
This  is  the  language  of  love,  and  love  expressed  in 
kisses  is  better  than  wine  or  any  other  food  or  drink. 
The  royal  oils  and  ointments  also  have  a  sweet  fra¬ 
grance,  but  the  very  name  of  the  king  has  a  fra¬ 
grance  and  a  potency  beyond  all  cosmetics.  There¬ 
fore  the  virgins  love  him  because  of  his  affection  and 
his  worth. 

The  fourth  verse  is  addressed  by  the  Chorus  to  the 

[170] 


Royal  Love  Making 


maiden.  The  language  is  still  the  language  of  affec¬ 
tion,  as  we  sometimes  sing,  “Draw  me  nearer, 
nearer.”  “We  will  run  after  thee,”  implies  their 
willingness  to  serve  and  honor  the  newcomer  and 
welcome  her  to  their  midst.  They  regard  her  as 
one  of  their  number,  altho  superior.  She  is  to  be  the 
subject  of  glad  conversation  among  them  and  will 
rightly  be  regarded  as  the  object  of  their  love  and 
devotion. 

At  verse  five  the  maiden  first  speaks.  She  con¬ 
fesses  her  swarthy  complexion  and  modestly  admits 
her  natural  beauty,  comparing  herself  to  the  dark 
tents  of  the  Arabs  and  to  the  pavilion  of  the  king  in 
which  they  are  now  housed.  She  is  evidently  con¬ 
scious  of  the  marked  contrast  between  her  own 
rustic  appearance  and  that  of  the  maidens  from  the 
royal  palace.  She  proceeds  to  explain  her  dark 
complexion.  She  has  been  much  in  the  hot  sun,  her 
brothers  have  placed  upon  her  the  keeping  of  the 
paternal  vineyards.  This  was  due  doubtless,  not  so 
much  because  of  any  cruelty  or  harshness  in  their 
disposition,  as  to  a  desire  to  keep  her  employed  as  a 
safeguard  against  idleness  and  vice.  Her  life  has 
therefore  been  spent  much  out  of  doors.  She  has 
doubtless  been  faithful  in  her  care  of  the  family 
property,  but  there  is  one  vineyard  she  has  not  kept. 
In  this  sly  reference  she  probably  means  her  own 
heart.  This  the  king  has  stolen  away  from  her. 

Thus  far  she  has  spoken  to  the  daughters  of  Jeru¬ 
salem,  the  Chorus.  She  now  turns  to  speak  to  the 
king  in  his  absence.  “Oh,  thou  whom  my  soul 


[171] 


The  Song  of  Solomon 


loveth,”  are  terms  of  the  most  endearing  friendship. 
Here  she  thinks  of  the  king  as  a  shepherd.  Where  is 
he  feeding  his  flock  in  her  absence?  Where  is  he 
leading  them  to  the  shadiest  nooks  for  rest  in  the 
heat  of  the  day?  Why  should  she  be  as  one  that  is 
veiled,  that  is,  cut  off  from  his  presence?  She  is  out 
of  place  here  in  the  royal  pavilion,  in  the  midst  of 
court  ladies.  It  would  be  more  seemly  for  her  to  be 
out  in  the  pastures  tending  the  sheep  with  the  man 
whom  her  soul  loves. 

The  Chorus,  taking  up  her  figure,  reply,  in  a  very 
courteous  manner  but  probably  with  a  tinge  of  sar¬ 
casm,  that  if  she  does  not  know  where  her  royal 
shepherd  is  she  might  follow  the  sheep  tracks  that 
lead  out  into  the  pastures  and  there  find  the  king  and 
help  to  feed  the  flock  beside  the  shepherd’s  tents. 

The  king  first  enters  at  verse  nine.  He  has  of 
course  met  the  maiden  on  former  occasions  and 
wooed  her  in  her  own  home,  but  this  is  their  first 
appearance  together  since  she  came  to  the  encamp¬ 
ment.  His  first  address  to  her  is  therefore  not  as 
abrupt  as  it  would  otherwise  seem. 

“I  have  compared  thee,  oh  my  love, 

To  a  steed  in  Pharaoh’s  chariots,” 

he  remarks.  This  is  bold  imagry  but  perfectly  nat¬ 
ural.  The  king  is  referring  to  her  natural,  noble 
beauty.  We  may  well  imagine  that  the  horses  em¬ 
ployed  in  the  royal  chariots  of  the  Egyptian  monarch 
were  the  most  beautiful,  stylish  and  perfect  speci- 


[172] 


Royal  Love  Making 


mens  to  be  found.  And  when  we  reflect  that  Solo¬ 
mon  introduced  from  Egypt  the  first  horses  into 
Israel  and  the  pride  taken  in  them,  this  language 
becomes  perfectly  natural  in  his  mouth. 

The  Chorus  seem  eager  also  to  express  their  feeling 
of  admiration  for  the  comely  young  woman.  But 
thei?  ideas  of  beauty  are  derived  from  another 
source,  and  it  may  be  that  their  first  comments  are 
based  upon  the  rustic  decorations  with  which  the 
maiden  came  from  her  cottage  home.  The  plaits  of 
hair  hanging  down  over  her  cheeks  probably  refer 
to  the  natural  manner  in  which  she  wore  her  tresses 
while  caring  for  the  vineyard  at  home,  and  the 
strings  of  jewels  about  her  neck  may  have  been  the 
simple  peasant  decorations  with  which  she  came  to 
the  royal  pavilion.  This  seems  the  more  natural  to 
suppose  in  light  of  the  eleventh  verse,  where  the 
daughters  of  Jerusalem  declare  that  they  will  make 
for  her  “ plaits  of  gold  with  studs  of  silver.”  They 
agree  that  her  natural  beauty  should  be  adorned 
with  rich  jewels  becoming  the  royal  society. 

While  the  king  and  the  maidens  thus  commend 
her  beauty  she  has  doubtless  sat  in  bashful  confusion, 
but  she  answers  in  a  manner  worthy  of  the  royal 
esteem.  While  the  king  sat  at  his  table  she  anointed 
him  with  her  most  fragrant  perfume,  probably  as  a 
natural  expression  of  her  love,  as  Mary  later  did  her 
blessed  Lord  out  of  a  similar  motive.  While  the 
spikenard  filled  the  room  with  its  fragrance,  it  was 
only  a  symbol  of  her  affection.  The  king  is  to  her 
as  a  bundle  of  myrrh  or  a  bouquet  of  sweet  scented 


[173] 


The  Song  of  Solomon 


flowers  lodged  in  her  bosom ;  or  to  change  the  figure, 
as  a  cluster  of  henna  flowers,  the  sweet  scented  cy¬ 
press.  These  grow  in  abundance  in  the  tropical 
climate  of  Engedi  on  the  western  coast  of  the  Dead 
Sea.  The  imagery  of  her  speech  is  that  the  king’s 
presence  is  to  her  as  a  sweet  and  rich  perfume  that 
envelopes  everything  in  its  fragrance. 

Beginning  at  the  fifteenth  verse  we  have  a  beauti¬ 
ful  picture  of  royal  love  making.  The  scene  is  no 
longer  within  the  tent  of  the  king,  hut  upon  the 
green  grass  at  the  edge  of  the  forest.  Says  the  king, 

“ Behold  thou  art  fair,  my  love; 

Behold  thou  art  fair; 

Thine  eyes  are  as  doves.” 

This  is  a  simple  commendation  of  her  beauty,  her 
comeliness  of  form,  and  her  natural  grace  and  charm. 
But  the  next  line  refers  to  her  disposition ;  her  mild 
and  gentle  eyes  are  like  those  of  the  dove,  sym¬ 
pathetic,  kind  and  sincere. 

She  replies, 

‘  ‘  Behold  thou  art  fair  my  beloved,  yea  pleasant ; 

Also  our  couch  is  green.” 

She,  in  turn,  commends  his  natural  beauty,  but  his 
attraction  is  not  restricted  to  this.  He  is  pleasant  to 
be  with,  gracious,  noble,  with  a  pleasing  personality. 
She  enjoys  his  companionship.  As  if  abashed  at  her 
frankness  she  changes  the  subject.  Looking  about 
she  remarks  upon  the  beautiful  greenery  all  around. 


[174] 


Royal  Love  Making 

The  little  hillock  where  they  are  sitting  is  like  a 
couch  in  a  large  room  covered  with  a  green  carpet. 

Taking  up  her  suggestion  the  king  replies,  ‘Yes 
this  is  a  stately  house.  The  trunks  of  these  great 
cedars  are  the  columns  and  pillars  that  support  it, 
and  the  branches  of  the  towering  firs  form  the  stately 
roof  that  overarches  us.’ 

This  image  suggests  another  from  the  maiden, 
‘And  I  am  a  rose  of  Sharon,  a  wild  flower  of  the 
forest  growing  here  beneath  these  stately  trees.  I 
am  a  lily  of  the  valley,  a  timid  little  flower  growing 
in  obscurity  in  these  deep  shades,  a  wild  sweet- 
scented  blossom  of  the  woods.’ 

But  the  love  banter  continues.  ‘As  a  lily  among 
thorns  and  brambles  and  underbrush  —  tender  and 
sweet  and  lovely  —  so  are  you  among  all  other 
women.  You  may  be  a  wild  flower  but  you  have  a 
native  grace  and  loveliness  that  distinguishes  you 
from  all  others.  ’ 

Once  more  rising  to  the  occasion  the  maiden  re¬ 
plies, 

“As  the  apple  tree  among  the  trees  of  the  wood, 

So  is  my  beloved  among  the  sons.” 

The  king  is  more  than  merely  agreeable  and  hand¬ 
some.  He  is  compared  to  the  fruitful  tree,  fragrant 
and  beautiful  in  the  spring  with  blossoms,  later 
loaded  with  luscious  health-giving  fruit.  As  com¬ 
pared  with  the  other  trees,  merely  ornamental  or  of 
commercial  value,  he  is  both  ornamental  and  useful. 


[175] 


The  Song  of  Solomon 

As  if  abashed  and  probably  surprised  at  her  own 
resourcefulness  she  recoils  and  muses  upon  the  occa¬ 
sion.  Her  thoughts  seem  to  run  in  this  manner.  ‘I 
came  into  the  tent  of  the  great  king  and  have  found 
him  pleasant  and  agreeable.  He  is  entertaining  and 
instructive.  He  is  altogether  lovely.  He  brought  me 
to  the  banqueting  house  and  the  banner  that  floats 
over  us  is  a  banner  of  love.  I  have  been  so  much 
engrossed  in  pleasant  conversation  in  his  company 
that  I  have  almost  forgotten  to  eat.  Nourish  me, 
therefore,  with  pleasant  fruits,  with  clusters  of 
raisins  and  with  apples,  for  I  am  languishing  in 
love.  I  feel  about  me  his  tender  embraces  which 
ravish  my  heart.’  This  is  the  ecstacy  of  affection. 

Turning  now  to  the  Chorus, 

“I  adjure  you,  0  daughters  of  Jerusalem, 

By  the  roes  or  by  the  hinds  of  the  field, 

That  ye  stir  not  up  nor  awake  my  love, 

Until  he  please.” 

This  is  a  sort  of  refrain  that  closes  several  of  the 
scenes.  It  shows  the  solicitous  feeling  of  the  maiden 
for  her  royal  wooer.  It  has  been  suggested  that  the 
Shulammite  is  Abishag,  the  nurse  of  David  in  his  old 
age.  The  suggestion  receives  some  probability  from 
the  nurse-like  attitude  that  she  seems  to  take  towards 
her  wooer.  She  would  sit  guard  over  him  in  his 
slumbers,  and  adjures  the  Chorus  by  the  roes  and 
hinds  of  the  mountain  that  they  must  not  disturb 
him  until  he  awakes  of  his  own  accord. 

[176] 


Scene  II  2  :  8  -  3 :  5 


Reminiscence  of  a  Royal  Courtship 

THE  second  scene  records  two  monologues  of  tlie 
maiden  addressed  to  the  Chorus.  They  are 
reminiscences  of  the  courtship  previous  to  that  re¬ 
corded  in  scene  one.  The  royal  party  must  be  under¬ 
stood  to  have  been  in  the  neighborhood  for  sometime, 
and  the  king  has  met  the  beautiful  maiden  doubtless 
on  several  occasions.  Chapter  two  from  verse  eight 
to  the  end  records  a  visit  paid  to  the  maiden  in  her 
own  home.  In  verses  eight  and  nine  she  recalls  very 
vividly  how  he  climbed  up  the  steep  mountain  path 
to  her  father’s  humble  cottage.  She  heard  him  com¬ 
ing  in  the  distance  as  it  were  “leaping  upon  the  moun¬ 
tains,  skipping  upon  the  hills,”  climbing  over  the 
rough  boulders,  and  rounding  the  sharp  crags.  She 
thinks  of  him  as  like  a  young  roe,  or  a  young  hart, 
in  his  nimble  activity.  But  the  winding  path  has 
finally  led  him  to  the  cottage.  She  sees  him  standing 
beyond  the  wall  of  the  house,  looking  in  at  the  window, 
using  every  avenue  of  observation  to  locate  her.  He 
glances  through  the  lattice  work  eager  to  discover 
whether  the  object  of  his  visit  is  within. 

Before  his  approach  to  the  portal  of  the  cottage, 
however,  she  recalls  the  beautiful  song  he  sang,  a  song 
of  love  and  nature,  a  song  of  budding  love.  And  it 
is  one  of  the  most  beautiful  of  its  kind  in  all  literature. 


[1771 


The  Song  of  Solomon 


“Rise  up,  my  love,  my  fair  one,  and  come  away. 

For,  lo,  the  winter  is  past; 

The  rain  is  over  and  gone; 

The  flowers  appear  on  the  earth ; 

The  time  of  the  singing  of  birds  is  come, 

And  the  voice  of  the  turtle  dove  is  heard  in  our  land ; 
The  fig  tree  ripeneth  her  green  figs, 

And  the  vines  are  in  blossom; 

They  give  forth  their  fragrance. 

Arise,  my  love,  my  fair  one,  and  come  away.” 

She  remembers  this  song  and  how  sweetly  it  rang 
in  her  ears  from  a  distance.  But  now  the  royal  wooer 
comes  nearer.  He  comes  up  to  the  very  threshold  of 
the  cottage,  and  addresses  her  in  terms  of  endearment. 
She  is  as  a  dove  in  the  clefts  of  the  rock.  Her 
father’s  cottage,  hidden  away  on  the  steep  rugged 
mountain  side,  suggests  this  bold  imagery.  It  is  in  the 
covert  of  a  steep  place.  He  calls  for  her  now  to  come 
out  to  him  that  he  may  see  her  face  and  hear  her 
sweet  voice,  both  of  which  are  pleasing  and  delight¬ 
some  to  him. 

She  replies  by  singing  a  snatch  from  a  popular 
ballad. 

“Catch  for  us  the  foxes,  the  little  foxes, 

They  that  spoil  the  vineyards; 

For  our  vineyards  are  in  blossom.” 

.This  is  an  undoubted  reference  to  her  rural  occupa¬ 
tion,  to  which  she  referred  in  the  first  scene.  She  is 
made  responsible  for  the  care  of  the  vineyard.  She 


[178] 


Reminiscence  of  a  Royal  Courtship 

can  not  answer  to  the  call  of  her  lover  to  go  away  for 
a  stroll  with  him  unless  the  little  foxes  are  caught, 
or  driven  away.  She  acknowledges  her  devotion  to 
him  and  accepts  him  as  her  lover,  but  she  can  not 
leave  her  work  now  even  to  entertain  the  king. 

She  therefore  sends  him  away  to  amuse  himself 
among  the  flowers  and  the  flocks  until  her  work  is 
finished. 

“Until  the  day  be  cool,  and  the  shadows  flee  away, 
Turn,  my  beloved,  and  be  thou  like  a  roe  or  a  young 
hart 

Upon  the  mountains  of  Bether.” 

The  mountains  of  Bether  are  undoubtedly  the  Bethron 
just  across  the  Jordan  from  where  the  royal  camp  was 
pitched.  This  is  a  broken  hilly  section  used  extensive¬ 
ly  for  pasturage  and  was  well  known  to  the  rustic 
maiden.  The  stroll  must  be  put  off  till  the  day  is 
cool  and  the  shadows  flee  away. 

The  second  monologue  is  the  record  of  a  dream,  and 
seems  to  have  no  basis  in  fact  such  as  the  first  had. 
The  maiden  relates  how  upon  her  bed  by  night  she 
imagined  herself  as  going  in  quest  of  him  whom  her 
soul  loved.  She  had  temporarily  been  separated  from 
the  object  of  her  affection  and  imagines  herself  going 
in  search  of  him  but  not  able  to  find  him. 

In  her  dream  she  says  to  herself, 

‘  ‘  I  will  rise  now  and  go  about  the  city ; 

In  the  streets  and  in  the  broad  ways 
I  will  seek  him  whom  my  soul  loveth.  ’  ’ 


[179] 


The  Song  of  Solomon 


In  her  dream-quest  she  seeks  him  in  the  streets,  in 
the  parks,  in  the  public  squares,  but  all  in  vain.  She 
inquires  of  the  watchmen  but  they  can  give  her  no 
helpful  information.  She  turns  away  from  them  with 
a  sad  heart  but  refuses  to  give  up  the  search. 

She  has,  however,  scarcely  more  than  left  the  police¬ 
man  when  she  comes  suddenly  upon  the  object  of  her 
quest.  She  eagerly  siezes  him  and  will  not  let  him 
go.  She  clings  to  him  and  brings  him  to  her  mother’s 
house,  into  the  very  chamber  in  which  she  had  first 
seen  the  light  of  day.  She  thinks  of  this  as  the  center 
and  sanctum  sanctorum  of  the  househeold.  This 
imagery  is  employed  for  the  purpose  of  emphasizing 
the  ardent  devotion  with  which  she  is  again  united 
with  the  object  of  her  affection. 

The  scene  closes  with  the  same  adjuration  that 
closes  the  first  scene.  The  words  are  identical  and 
represent  a  similar  condition.  Having  recovered,  in 
imagination,  her  lost  lover  she  is  unwilling  that  their 
happy  tranquility  shall  be  interrupted  even  by  a  song 
from  the  royal  Chorus. 


[180] 


\ 


Scene  III  3 :  6  -  5 : 1 


A  Bridal  Procession  and  Royal 

Espousals 

THUS  far  the  scene  of  the  dramatic  action  has 
been  in  the  north  country,  in  the  neighborhood 
of  the  maiden’s  home.  Now  it  shifts  to  Jerusalem 
where  the  next  scene  takes  place.  The  preliminary 
wooing  is  at  an  end.  The  royal  party  return  to  the 
palace,  but  not  until  the  king’s  suit  has  been  success¬ 
fully  terminated. 

The  maiden  is  to  be  conveyed  to  the  king’s  palace 
in  a  stately  procession.  This  is  doubtless  after  the 
royal  party  had  returned.  Elaborate  preparations 
have  been  made  and  the  procession  is  attended  with 
pomp  and  splendor.  As  the  brilliant  cavalcade  ap¬ 
proaches  Jerusalem  a  group  of  citizens  observe  it 
in  the  distance.  It  comes  up  towards  the  capitol,  as 
it  were,  out  of  the  wilderness,  out  of  the  open  country, 
the  rich  pasture  lands  sloping  off  toward  the  Jordan. 
The  procession  is  accompanied  by  pillars  of  smoke, 
clouds  of  incense  rising  from  the  fragrant  herbs 
burned  about  the  royal  litter.  The  rich  fragrance  of 
the  myrrh  and  frankincense  fills  the  air  and  blends 
with  the  odors  of  other  oriental  spices,  which  form  a 
chief  commodity  of  the  commerce  from  the  orient. 
The  question  naturally  in  the  mind  of  the  observers 

[181] 


> 


The  Song  of  Solomon 


is,  who  is  this  that  cometh  up  from  the  wilderness  in 
such  pomp  and  splendor? 

On  closer  view  the  citizens  recognize  the  carriage 
of  their  king,  and  the  king’s  body  guard  accompany¬ 
ing  it.  They  remember  them  as  the  loyal  soldiers  of 
the  monarch,  skilled  in  handling  the  sword,  expert  in 
war.  They  note  that  every  man  has  his  weapons  upon 
him,  indicating  that  every  precaution  has  been  taken 
on  the  journey  so  as  not  to  be  taken  unawares  in  the 
night.  The  cavalcade  had  been  strongly  armed  and 
carefully  guarded. 

Having  recognized  the  royal  litter,  the  men  begin 
to  comment  upon  it.  They  remember  that  King 
Solomon  had  this  particular  conveyance  built  of  wood 
from  the  Lebanon  mountains.  The  pillars  support¬ 
ing  the  roof  are  decorated  with  silver.  They  support 
a  canopy  of  gold.  The  seat  is  cushioned  with  the  royal 
purple  and  is  decorated  with  all  that  love  can  devise. 
The  adornment  is  provided  by  the  Chorus,  the  daugh¬ 
ters  of  Jerusalem,  indicating  the  beautiful  spirit  ex¬ 
isting  between  them  and  the  maiden  and  banishing  all 
thought  of  jealousy  or  ill  will. 

As  the  procession  approaches  the  palace  the  citizens 
call  to  the  daughters  of  Zion  to  go  forth  and  behold 
the  king.  While  the  occasion  is  the  arrival  of  the 
Shulammite  maiden,  the  king  is  the  center  of  attrac¬ 
tion  and  the  center  of  interest.  The  daughters  of 
Zion  are  a  body  of  court  ladies  who  have  remained 
at  the  palace  and  represent  a  different  group  from 
the  Chorus  who  are  always  designated  as  the  daugh¬ 
ters  of  Jerusalem.  The  daughters  of  Zion  go  forth 


A  Bridal  Procession  and  Royal  Espousals 

to  welcome  the  royal  procession.  The  king  appears 
wearing  the  crown  which  his  mother,  the  beantifnl 
Bathsheba,  placed  upon  his  head.  This  crowning 
was  not  in  relation  to  his  accession  to  the  throne  but 
on  the  event  of  his  espousal  to  the  Shulammite  damsel, 
the  day  of  the  gladness  of  his  heart. 

The  royal  procession  enters  the  palace.  After  an 
interval  of  rest  and  refreshment  the  royal  wooer  is 
again  disclosed  with  the  object  of  his  affection.  The 
scene  is  one  of  the  rooms  of  the  palace,  or  the  palace 
grounds  near  by.  The  king  is  all  ardor  and  devotion. 
He  comments  upon  the  beauty  of  the  maiden,  drawing 
bold  images  of  her  beauty  from  various  objects  about 
him.  “Behold  thou  art  fair,  my  love;  behold  thou 
art  fair.”  The  description  of  beauty  that  follows 
is  only  an  elaboration  of  this  sentiment. 

In  her  eyes  he  sees  again  the  soft  gentle  look  of 
love,  which  reveals  a  quiet  spirit  and  affectionate  dis¬ 
position.  Her  hair  reminds  him  of  a  flock  of  goats 
lying  along  the  side  of  Mt.  Gilead.  The  point  in  the 
comparison  doubtless  is  the  numerousness  of  the  ob¬ 
jects.  As  the  great  flocks  seem  to  cover  the  moun¬ 
tain  side,  so  her  beautiful  locks  cover  her  comely  head. 
Her  teeth  are  like  flocks  of  sheep  just  come  up  from 
the  washing,  white  as  snow,  appearing  always  in 
groups  of  two  in  which  none  are  wanting.  The  pearly 
whiteness  of  the  teeth,  the  regularity  of  their  form, 
and  the  fact  that  none  are  missing,  are  the  objects 
in  the  comparison.  Her  lips  are  a  thread  of  scarlet 
which  make  the  mouth  comely,  and  the  blue  veins  of 
her  temple  appear  in  patches  of  beauty  between  the 

[183] 


\ 

\ 


The  Song  of  Solomon 


comely  locks.  The  bold  arch  of  the  neck  reminds  him 
of  the  tower  of  David  rising  above  the  walls  of  Jeru¬ 
salem,  and  the  jewels  about  her  neck  suggest  the 
armor  that  is  frequently  hung  about  the  tower.  Her 
entire  form  is  a  perfect  model  of  comeliness  and  beau¬ 
ty.  The  beauty  here  referred  to  is  the  beauty  of 
nature,  charm,  grace,  and  native  dignity. 

At  this  point  she  interrupts  her  royal  suitor  and 
dismisses  him.  She  wishes  to  be  alone.  Until  the 
cool  of  the  evening  comes  on  she  will  go  to  the  moun¬ 
tain  of  myrrh  and  to  the  hill  of  frankincense.  This 
is  doubtless  some  nook  or  enclosure  in  the  palace 
grounds  made  fragrant  by  sweet-scented  herbs  and 
flowers.  Alone  with  the  meditations  of  her  heart, 
we  can  imagine  the  rustic  maiden  in  this  new  environ¬ 
ment  to  have  enough  to  occupy  her  thoughts. 

Evening  has  come  and  the  royal  suitor  resumes 
his  wooing.  The  scene  is  doubtless  a  room  in  the 
palace.  As  in  the  preceding  scene,  he  begins  with 
a  compliment  to  the  beauty  of  the  maiden,  but  the 
tone  is  more  ardent.  Then  she  was  spoken  of  as 
“fair,”  now  she  is  “all  fair”  and  the  additional 
thought  is  added,  “There  is  no  spot  in  thee.”  It  is 
not  only  her  beauty  that  is  now  commended  but  her 
goodness,  her  purity. 

The  eighth  verse  is  an  ardent  exhortation  of  the 
king  to  the  maiden  to  give  up  her  northern  home,  her 
kindred  and  friends,  and  to  live  only  for  him  and 
with  him  at  Jerusalem.  Now  for  the  first  time  he 
calls  her  his  bride.  This  means  that  the  nuptial 
vows  have  been  sealed  and  the  royal  espousals  are 

[184] 


A  Bridal  Procession  and  Royal  Espousals 

consummated.  The  mention  of  four  mountain  peaks 
in  the  neighborhood  of  her  former  home  from  the 
summits  of  which  she  is  bidden  to  take  a  survey  is 
probably  intended  to  suggest  the  rough  wild  country 
infested  with  beasts  of  prey,  which  she  is  bidden  to 
leave  for  the  more  attractive  and  gay  life  of  the  palace. 

But  he  returns  again  to  the  charms  of  his  sister- 
bride.  It  is  no  longer  the  charms  of  physical  beauty, 
upon  which  he  had  dwelt  in  the  former  scene,  but 
rather  those  of  character  and  sentiment  that  he  now 
commends.  The  gentle  loving  expression  of  her  eyes 
has  ravished  his  heart,  and  the  rich  jewel  at  her  throat 
is  a  symbol  of  her  modest  demeanor  and  her  priceless 
worth.  How  beautiful  is  her  sincere  affection.  How 
much  better  these  endearments  of  character  and  no¬ 
bility  of  nature  than  any  material  thing  with  which 
they  could  be  compared.  They  are  as  a  rich  fra¬ 
grance,  suggestive  of  the  noblest  purity.  Her  tongue 
is  as  the  pure  droppings  of  the  honey  comb,  the  very 
essence  of  sweetness;  such  comfort,  such  consolation, 
such  purity  of  motives,  such  nobility  of  sentiment  is 
in  her  words.  The  very  fragrance  of  the  Lebanon 
mountains  seems  to  exude  from  her  presence. 

The  imagery  is  again  changed,  and  now  to  the  idea 
of  goodness  and  purity  is  added  the  thought  of  holi¬ 
ness.  The  bride  is  as  an  enclosed  garden  jealously 
guarded  against  all  violence,  and  abounds  in  rich 
fruits  and  spices  and  springs  of  living  water.  The 
imagery  reminds  one  of  the  description  of  Paradise. 
The  henna  and  spikenard  plants  and  other  rich  per¬ 
fumes  typify  the  fragrance  of  a  noble,  holy  life.  It 

[185] 


The  Song  of  Solomon 


is  as  a  sealed  fountain,  a  well  of  living  waters,  issuing 
in  a  stream  of  true  and  noble  living. 

She  answers  briefly,  and  her  answer  is  a  prayer. 
She  invokes  the  north  wind  and  the  south  wind  to 
come  and  blow  upon  her  garden,  continuing  the 
imagery  of  her  suitor.  It  is  a  wish  that  all  that  her 
espoused  husband  hopes  of  her  may  be  fully 
realized.  She  prays  that  the  powers  of  heaven  may 
bring  to  fruition  those  noble  traits  of  character  for 
which  she  has  been  commended.  It  is  the  wish  not 
primarily  to  possess  these  graces  for  her  own  enjoy¬ 
ment  but  that  her  espoused  may  realize  in  her  life 
and  companionship  all  the  happiness  and  satisfaction 
that  his  heart  has  anticipated. 

The  king's  reply  is  alike  commendatory.  His 
highest  expectations  are  realized.  The  richest  graces 
of  character  and  the  truest  ideals  of  companionship, 
symbolized  by  the  myrrh  and  the  spice,  are  his,  and 
nothing  has  been  found  disappointing  or  unworthy. 
In  the  rich  garden  of  his  enjoyment  he  has  eaten  the 
honeycomb  with  the  honey.  All  has  been  happiness 
without  alloy.  The  address  to  friends  at  the  close 
of  the  section  indicates  the  presence  of  others  which 
suggests  the  scene  of  a  banquet.  The  scene  closes  in 
the  loftiest  strain  of  loyal  affection  and  pure  joy  of 
heart. 


[186] 


Scene  IV  5 :  2  -  6 :  9 


Misgivings  and  Confidences  of 
Wedded  Love 

N  interval  of  time  must  be  understood  to  inter- 


j\  vene  between  the  preceeding  scene  and  this  one. 
Verses  two  to  seven  record  another  troubled  dream 
of  the  bride.  The  dream  is  similar  to  one  recorded 
before,  but  has  a  deeper  tone  of  sadness  than  the 
former.  It  seems  to  arise  out  of  a  slight  misunder¬ 
standing  or  estrangement  that  sweeps  over  her  soul. 
A  passing  doubt  separates  her  from  the  companion¬ 
ship  of  her  beloved.  But  her  fidelity  to  him  is  un¬ 
shaken  and  his  love  for  her  is  unabated. 

“I  was  asleep  but  my  heart  waked.”  This  is  a 
poetical  way  of  saying  that  she  dreamed.  She  seemed 
to  hear  the  voice  of  her  beloved  requesting  that  she 
open  the  door  to  admit  him.  The  request  is  accompa¬ 
nied  by  the  usual  terms  of  endearment  and  suggests 
the  absolute  confidence  of  the  king  in  her  loyalty 
and  fidelity  of  character.  The  reference  to  his  hair 
being  wet  with  the  dews  of  the  night  indicate  that  he 
has  been  out  all  the  night  long.  In  her  subconscious 
mind  she  hears  his  voice  and  hears  his  knocking  for 
entrance  but  is  not  sufficiently  conscious  of  the  mean¬ 
ing  of  it  all  to  give  an  intelligent  reply,  so  she  answers 
by  giving  trivial  excuses.  She  has  put  off  her  garment 


[187] 


The  Song  of  Solomon 


and  how  shall  she  put  it  on.  She  has  bathed  her 
feet,  how  shall  she  soil  them  upon  the  floor.  These 
are  the  half  conscious  excuses  that  rise  in  her  mind 
ere  she  becomes  awake. 

But  the  bridegroom  can  not  so  easily  be  turned  from 
his  purpose.  He  reaches  in  through  the  opening  of 
the  oriental  housedoor  to  remove  the  bolt  of  the  lock. 
He  fingers  the  lock  but  does  not  remove  the  bolt.  By 
this  time  she  has  awakened  and  her  heart  is  all  aglow 
with  the  thought  of  his  return.  She  hastily  arises  to 
open  the  door.  She  takes  hold  of  the  same  bolt  that 
he  has  fingered  and  her  hand  at  once  becomes  fragrant 
from  the  fragrance  left  there  by  the  loving  touch  of 
his  hand.  This  is  a  beautiful  symbolism  of  the  sin¬ 
cere  and  true  devotion  of  his  spirit  in  seeking  to  re¬ 
enter  his  home.  All  that  he  touched  was  left  fragrant 
with  the  aroma  of  his  presence. 

But  when  she  joyfully  opens  the  door  he  is  not 
there.  He  has  withdrawn  himself  and  is  gone.  She 
now  thinks  of  herself  as  going  out  into  the  street  in 
quest  of  him,  as  in  the  former  dream,  but  is  unable 
to  find  him.  She  calls  for  him,  he  gives  no  answer. 
The  watchmen  find  her.  They  treat  her  cruelly,  tear¬ 
ing  the  veil  from  her  face  and  wounding  her.  It  is 
not  only  a  fruitless  quest  but  ends  in  disappointment 
and  suffering.  It  is  all  very  real  to  her,  however. 
As  she  narrates  the  dream  to  the  daughters  of  Jeru¬ 
salem,  after  she  is  fully  awake,  she  puts  them  under 
oath  that  in  case  they  find  her  beloved  they  will  tell 
him  she  is  sick  of  love. 

In  this  scene  a  slight  vein  of  romance  is  evidently 

[188] 


Misgivings  and  Confidences  of  Wedded  Love 

interwoven,  which  suggests  the  idealism  of  pure  liter¬ 
ature.  The  facts  of  history  are  viewed  in  the  light 
of  their  poetical  setting.  Without  doing  violence  to 
the  facts  of  the  story  the  theme  rises  on  the  wings  of 
imaginative  charm  into  the  realm  of  universal  expe¬ 
rience  and  pure  poetry. 

The  recital  of  the  dream  with  its  accompanying  ad¬ 
juration  leads  to  a  conversation  between  the  Chorus 
and  the  bride. 

“What  is  thy  beloved  more  than  another  beloved, 
0  thou  fairest  among  women?” 

the  Chorus  demand.  Why  this  solemn  adjuration  and 
this  excited  manner? 

The  answer  gives  the  bride  an  opportunity  to  de¬ 
scribe  the  charms  of  her  lover,  somewhat  on  the  lines 
of  his  description  of  her.  Yerses  ten  to  sixteen  form 
this  description.  The  imagry  is  bold  and  striking,  as 
usual,  and  the  statements  altogether  frank.  Most  of 
the  comment  is  figurative  but  the  comparisons  are 
natural.  His  white  and  ruddy  complexion  suggests 
a  picture  of  physical  beauty  and  health.  “He  is  the 
chiefest  among  ten  thousand,”  doubtless  referring 
to  his  military  bearing  and  fine  manly  physique.  The 
comparison  of  his  head  to  the  finest  gold  relates  to  its 
preciousness.  The  bushy  locks  as  “black  as  a  raven” 
are  indications  of  healthy  vigor  and  manly  beauty. 
The  reference  to  his  eyes  is  more  obscure,  but  the 
meaning  may  be  something  like  this.  As  white  doves 
sitting  quietly  by  the  placid  brook  are  objects  of 

[189] 


The  Song  of  Solomon 


tranquil  peace,  so  his  eyes  look  love  and  kindness  from 
the  precious  brow  in  which  they  are  set  as  jewels. 
His  cheeks  are  glowing  and  ruddy  like  a  bed  of  flow¬ 
ers  and  his  gentle  words  are  as  pure  as  the  lily  and 
as  soothing  and  sweet  as  the  richest  perfume.  His 
hands  and  his  body,  symbolized  by  rich  jewels,  are 
lovely  and  precious.  His  very  aspect  is  majestic  as 
Lebanon,  noble  and  stately  as  the  lofty  cedar.  The 
words  of  his  mouth  are  gentle  and  kind.  But  why 
continue  this  inventory?  His  beauties  and  his  vir¬ 
tues  can  not  be  told.  He  is  altogether  lovely.  This 
is  a  description  sufficiently  characteristic  to  distin¬ 
guish  him;  and  this  is  the  description  of  her  lover, 
her  jewel,  her  friend. 

The  daughters  of  Jerusalem  repeat  their  inquiry, 
‘  ‘  Whither  is  thy  beloved  gone  ?  Where  is  he  ?  If  we 
knew  where  to  seek  we  would  try  to  help  you  find 
him.  ’  ’ 

She  is  not  at  a  loss  as  to  his  whereabouts. 

“My  beloved  is  gone  down  to  his  garden, 

To  the  beds  of  spices, 

To  feed  in  the  gardens  and  to  gather  lilies. 

I  am  my  beloved ’s  and  my  beloved  is  mine ; 

He  feedeth  his  flock  among  the  lilies.  ’ ? 

This  is  pure  poetry,  and  it  suggests  to  us  that  the 
entire  scene  of  her  troubled  dream  and  her  adorable 
description  of  her  lover  is  not  to  be  taken  too  seriously 
as  matter  of  fact.  The  theme  has  risen  above  a  record 
of  actual  experience  into  the  truer  record  of  universal 

[190] 


Misgivings  and  Confidences  of  Wedded  Love 

experience.  This  is  literature,  and  it  is  life  at  its 
truest. 

The  previous  discussion  has  led  up  to  the  finding 
of  the  beloved.  Thus  invoked  he  enters,  and  his  first 
words  are  the  stereotyped  formula  used  at  the  begin¬ 
ning  of  three  conversations  before :  ‘ 1  Thou  art  fair, 
0  my  love.”  But  as  in  former  appearances  the  image¬ 
ry  is  again  varied.  Here  the  beauty  of  the  bride  as 
suggested  by  comparing  her  with  the  two  most  beauti¬ 
ful  cities  of  Palestine,  Tirzah,  an  old  Canaanitish 
capitol,  and  Jerusalem  the  city  of  the  great  king,  sug¬ 
gests  a  magnificance  and  splendor  not  hitherto  im¬ 
plied.  The  further  touch  suggested  by  an  army  on 
the  march  with  floating  banners  adds  to  the  gorgeous¬ 
ness  of  the  picture.  Here  the  beauty  of  the  bride  is 
that  of  a  conquering,  compelling  sort,  that  which 
brings  her  admirer  to  her  feet  in  worshipful  reverence 
and  awe. 

Under  this  influence  he  begs  her  to  turn  her  eyes 
away.  He  can  not  endure  her  awe-inspiring  gaze. 
It  has  completely  overcome  him.  In  his  subjection 
he  muses  upon  the  beauties  of  her  form  and  feature 
in  the  identical  words  of  a  former  description.  These 
have  been  sufficiently  remarked  upon. 

The  king  is  now  in  a  mood  to  compare  his  bride 
with  the  other  candidates  for  her  place  of  honor. 
“  There  are  threescore  queens,  and  fourscore  concu¬ 
bines,  and  virgins  without  number.”  This  may  be 
a  literal  statement  of  fact  at  the  time  of  the  story. 
Each  one  of  these  would  crave  that  first  place  of  honor 
in  the  royal  household  which  has  been  accorded  the 

[191] 


The  Song  of  Solomon 


rustic  maiden.  But  among  them  all  she  is  the  one, 
the  chosen  one,  the  honored  one,  the  gentle  dove-like 
perfect  one,  who  surpasses  all  others.  She  is  also  the 
favorite  of  her  mother,  and  even  her  rivals  at  the 
palace  look  upon  her  and  bless  her  and  praise  her  as 
worthy  of  her  place  of  distinction. 


[192] 


Scene  V  6:10-8:4 


The  Lure  of  Beauty  and  of  Home 

“  Y1TT  HO  is  she  that  looketh  forth  as  the  morning, 
VV  Fair  as  the  moon, 

Clear  as  the  sun, 

Terrible  as  an  army  with  banners?” 

This  is  a  chant  of  the  Chorus  as  the  bride,  on  a  bright 
spring  morning,  comes  forth  with  all  the  freshness 
and  beauty  of  her  young  life.  The  imagery  is  spark¬ 
ling  with  dewy  freshness.  It  is  the  beauty  of  nature, 
heavenly  beauty,  which  radiates  from  her  countenance 
and  the  grace  and  charm  of  her  personality.  She 
greets  the  maidens  of  the  Chorus  with  a  courteous 
smile  and  rewards  their  praise  by  narrating  an  inci¬ 
dent  in  her  early  life.  As  a  rustic  maiden  in  her 
father’s  cottage,  she  went  down  at  this  same  season 
of  the  year  to  the  garden  of  nuts  and  herbs,  to  see 
how  the  plants  were  growing,  whether  the  vine  was 
putting  forth  its  buds,  and  whether  the  pomegranates 
were  in  blossom.  The  care  of  the  garden,  as  we  have 
already  seen,  was  her  assigned  portion  of  the  domestic 
duties.  As  she  went  about  her  humble  tasks  a  great 
experience  came  into  her  life.  Before  she  was  aware 
of  it,  she  was  set  among  the  chariots  of  her  people  to 
rule  in  a  place  of  leadership  among  them.  Of  course 
she  refers  to  her  first  meeting  with  the  king  who  has 
advanced  her  to  the  position  besides  himself  in  honor. 


[193] 


The  Song  of  Solomon 


Having  recited  this  story  she  turns  to  pass  from 
them.  Again  they  chant: 

‘  ‘  Return,  return,  0  Shulammite ; 

Return,  return,  that  we  may  look  upon  thee.” 

Her  companionship,  as  her  beauty  and  charm  of  man¬ 
ner,  all  make  her  presence  agreeable,  and  the  maidens 
of  the  Chorus  loath  to  see  her  leave  them. 

She  replies  courteously,  wondering  why  they  desire 
to  look  upon  an  inhabitant  of  her  little  provincial 
town,  with  which  she  instinctively  connects  the  dance 
of  Mahanaim.  The  implication  is  clear  that  the 
Chorus  has  requested  her  to  give  for  their  entertain¬ 
ment  an  exhibition  of  this  ancient  dance. 

Just  what  the  dance  of  Mahanaim  was  is  not  very 
well  known.  The  name  is  undoubtedly  derived  from 
the  city  of  Mahanaim,  which  was  intimately  associ¬ 
ated  with  Hebrew  life.  It  was  here,  or  near  here, 
that  Jacob  was  reconciled  to  his  father-in-law  Laban 
after  his  departure  from  Padanaram.  Here  also  began 
his  reconciliation  with  Esau.  Later  Mahanaim  be¬ 
came  one  of  the  Levitical  cities,  and  at  the  time  of 
the  poem  was  closely  identified  with  the  life  of  the 
Jews.  The  dance  of  Mahanaim  was  almost  certainly 
some  sort  of  religious  festival,  probably  dating  back 
to  an  ancient  origin.  It  was  of  a  popular  character 
and  may  have  been  of  the  nature  of  a  folk  dance.  It 
undoubtedly  perpetuated  some  local  occurrence, 
which,  through  succeeding  generations,  had  devel¬ 
oped  into  a  sacred  legend. 


[194] 


The  Lure  of  Beauty  and  of  Home 

The  dance  is  not  described,  although  the  first  five 
verses  of  the  seventh  chapter  record  a  song  that  was 
sung  by  the  Chorus  as  an  accompaniment.  The  song, 
as  a  sort  of  chant,  comments  upon  the  graces  of  the 
bride  in  rendering  the  dance.  The  description  does 
not  vary  greatly  from  that  formerly  given  by  the 
king,  except  that  here  we  see  her  charms  exhibited 
in  the  motion  of  the  performance.  Beginning  with 
her  sandled  feet,  her  bodily  charms  and  graces  of 
movement  are  delineated,  culminating  with  the  flow¬ 
ing  locks  of  her  hair  as  fitting  snares  with  which  to 
captivate  a  king. 

At  this  point  the  king  again  enters  repeating  once 
more  his  delight  in  her  beauty.  His  thought  however 
passes  at  once  to  the  commendation  of  her  worth,  the 
solid  comfort  she  has  brought  into  his  life  by  her 
pleasing  and  delightful  society.  To  make  his  thought 
concrete  he  compares  her  to  the  stately  palm,  a  cling¬ 
ing  vine,  and  the  apple  tree,  symbolizing  by  these  ob¬ 
jects  her  graceful  beauty,  her  tender  affection,  and 
the  rich  fruit  of  her  personality  and  character.  Her 
speech  like  the  flowing  of  sweet  wine  — 

Here  she  abruptly  breaks  into  his  laudation,  takes 
the  words  out  of  his  mouth  and  finishes  the  sentence 
with  a  reference  to  his  own  delight  in  the  beverage 
with  which  he  has  compared  her  words.  She  acknowl¬ 
edges  that  she  is  all  in  all  his,  but  implies  that  he 
talks  too  much  about  it.  At  the  same  time  she  is  con¬ 
scious  that  his  affection  for  her  is  as  deep  and  full 
and  complete  as  hers  for  him  can  possibly  be. 

This  mutual  regard  is  a  fitting  mood  in  which  she 


[195] 


The  Song  of  Solomon 


may  present  a  request,  a  deep  wish  of  her  heart. 
This  is  her  desire  to  pay  a  visit  to  her  former  home 
in  the  company  of  the  king. 

*  ‘  Come,  my  beloved,  let  us  go  forth  into  the  field ; 

Let  us  lodge  in  the  villages. 

Let  us  get  up  early  to  the  vineyards ; 

Let  us  see  whether  the  vine  hath  budded, 

And  its  blossom  is  open, 

And  the  pomegranates  are  in  flower : 

There  will  I  give  thee  my  love.” 

She  has  become  tired  of  court  life.  She  longs  for  the 
simplicity  and  freedom  of  her  childhood  days.  She 
would  wander  forth  with  her  royal  lover,  through  the 
open  fields,  lodging  in  the  villages,  enjoying  his  com¬ 
panionship  without  restraint.  She  had  been  conveyed 
to  Jerusalem  in  great  state  and  in  a  great  throng. 
She  would  return  in  quiet  simplicity,  unheralded,  in 
keeping  with  her  former  shepherd  life,  which  she  en¬ 
joyed  and  still  loves.  She  would  lead  her  lord  to  the 
vineyard  she  attended  as  a  girl,  see  the  vines  budding 
forth  again,  as  they  did  in  that  other  sweet  spring¬ 
time  when  he  had  wooed  her  there.  And  in  the  midst 
of  these  former  scenes,  fragrant  with  the  blossoms 
and  the  pomegranates,  she  would  seal  again  her 
sacred  vows  of  love  to  him. 

The  fragrance  of  the  mandrakes,  apples  of  love, 
suggests  to  her  how  welcome  their  visit  will  be  in  the 
home  of  her  mother.  Here  will  be  all  manner  of 
precious  fruits  already  laid  up  in  anticipation  of  the 

[196] 


The  Lure  of  Beauty  and  of  Home 

visit,  and  in  the  glad  summertime  which  is  to  follow 
there  will  be  others  to  gather. 

“0  that  thou  wert  as  my  brother,”  she  says,  ad¬ 
dressing  her  beloved.  ‘If  you  were  my  own  brother 
the  son  of  my  mother,  how  free  and  familiar  could 
be  our  association  in  the  old  rustic  home.  Then  I 
could  freely  kiss  you  and  caress  you  and  none  would 
think  ill  of  me  for  so  doing/  Here  simple,  chaste, 
noble  love  for  him  so  frankly  avowed  is  untouched 
by  any  taint  of  suspicion  or  worldly  passion. 

She  would  take  her  royal  spouse  into  her  mother’s 
humble  home  where  they  could  be  perfectly  happy, 
untrammeled  by  the  formal  etiquette  and  decorum  of 
the  court.  Her  mother  would  instruct  her  how  to 
demean  herself  toward  him.  In  the  absence  of  serv¬ 
ants  she  would  herself  bring  him  the  spiced  wine  and 
the  juice  of  her  pomegranates  to  drink.  Their  stay 
in  the  old  home  would  be  filled  with  ease  and  comfort 
and  soul  satisfaction. 

Turning  now  to  the  Chorus  the  bride  reminds  them 
that  under  such  circumstances  it  would  be  perfectly 
proper  that  her  lord  should  embrace  her,  and  that 
expressions  and  tokens  of  love  would  be  their  free  and 
liberal  privilege. 

In  such  a  setting  she  would  make  herself  responsible 
for  the  peace  and  rest  and  comfort  of  him  whom  she 
loves.  Therefore,  in  the  language  she  addressed  to 
the  Chorus  on  two  former  occasions,  she  adjures  them 
not  to  disturb  nor  interrupt  the  free  course  of  their 
happy  associations  in  any  unnecessary  way. 


[197] 


Scene  VI  8 :5  — 14 


The  Rewards  of  Virtue 

THE  bride’s  glowing  picture  of  a  joyous  visit  to  her 
mother’s  home  is  to  be  realized;  and  the  scene 
now  changes  from  the  royal  palace  to  the  fresh  out  of 
doors  of  the  Lebanon  region.  One  beautiful  spring 
evening  when  the  family  have  gathered  around  the 
cottage  veranda  they  behold  two  foot  travelers  wending 
their  way  slowly  up  the  hillside  towards  the  rustic 
abode. 

“Who  is  this  that  cometh  up  from  the  wilderness, 
Leaning  upon  her  beloved  ?  ’  ’ 

The  bride  is  again  approaching  her  old  home,  leaning 
upon  the  arm  of  her  royal  husband.  They  walk  slow¬ 
ly  along  the  rugged  path,  observing  closely  every 
familiar  object,  and  pausing  now  and  then  to  examine 
some  point  of  interest  made  sacred  by  former  associa¬ 
tions.  At  length  they  come  to  the  old  apple  tree  by 
the  wayside,  the  tryst ing  place  of  their  early  love. 
Here  they  had  sat  together  and  talked  together.  It 
was  a  sacred  place,  sanctified  by  holy  associations  and 
tender  memories.  Every  object  awakens  fond  recol¬ 
lections. 

The  situation  grows  tenser  and  tenser  with  emotion. 

[198] 


The  Rewards  of  Virtue 


The  bride’s  feelings  overrun  with  joy.  She  pours  out 
her  soul  in  rapturous  desire. 

“Set  me  as  a  seal  upon  thy  heart, 

As  the  seal  upon  thy  arm : 

For  love  is  strong  as  death ; 

Jealousy  is  cruel  as  Sheol; 

The  flashes  thereof  are  flashes  of  fire, 

A  very  flame  of  Jehovah. 

Many  waters  can  not  quench  love, 

Neither  can  floods  drown  it; 

If  a  man  would  give  all  the  substance  of  his  house 
for  love, 

He  would  utterly  be  contemned.” 

In  this  rapturous  utterance  an  affection  pure  and 
sacred  finds  consummate  expression.  It  is  a  holy, 
sanctified  love,  typifjung  the  immaculate  purity  of 
the  spiritual  bride  as  related  to  her  husband.  She 
would  be  a  seal  upon  his  heart  and  a  sign  upon  his 
arm,  a  steadying  and  staying  power  in  his  life,  a 
constant  presence  to  help,  to  exalt,  to  ennoble. 

The  symbolism  of  the  language,  too,  is  majestic  in 
its  suggestiveness.  Love  is  strong  as  death,  perverted 
love  cruel  as  hell,  and  expresses  itself  in  flashes  from 
the  infernal  pit.  But  love  is  undying,  it  is  an  eternal 
flame  from  Jehovah.  Floods  of  water  can  not  quench 
it,  and  if  one  should  give  all  that  he  possesses  in  the 
world  for  it,  his  gift  would  be  most  despicable.  It 
is  the  thought  of  the  great  apostle,  when  he  said,  “Tho 
I  bestow  all  my  goods  to  feed  the  poor,  and  tho  I  give 

[199] 


The  Song  of  Solomon 

my  body  to  be  burned,  and  have  not  love,  it  profiteth 
me  nothing.  ” 

In  this  noble  expression  the  poem  reaches  its  climax. 
There  is  nothing  more  to  be  said  on  the  main  theme, 
but  there  are  other  considerations  that  help  to  set  forth 
the  true  dignity  of  the  work,  and  bring  into  full  view 
the  solid  basis  of  moral  principle  upon  which  it  is 
constructed.  In  presenting  these  matters  of  domestic 
interest  a  fine  cadence  is  secured,  and  the  theme  is 
restored  from  the  lofty  rapture  of  pure  delight  to  the 
more  practical  details  of  complete  living. 

The  royal  pair  have  been  received  into  the  mountain 
home.  The  greetings  have  been  cordial  and  sincere; 
love  flows  like  a  river.  The  formality  of  court  life  is 
forgotten.  The  family  circle  draw  up  their  chairs 
around  the  old  hearthstone  and  the  familiar  home  in¬ 
terests  are  discussed  without  reserve.  It  is  this  pic¬ 
ture  of  the  happy  family  group  discussing  the  inter¬ 
ests  of  their  own  hearth  and  home  that  justifies  the 
addition  of  this  last  scene. 

In  one  of  these  conversations,  when  the  king  is 
doubtless  absent,  the  early  life  of  the  bride  and  her 
brothers  is  under  discussion.  We  have  already  seen 
the  practical  interest  of  her  brothers  in  her  welfare 
as  a  girl.  The  same  question  is  again  a  matter  of  in¬ 
terest  to  them.  They  have  another  sister  just  growing 
into  young  womanhood.  The  brothers  and  mother 
are  anxiously  seeking  counsel  of  the  elder  sister  in  her 
behalf.  She  has  had  experience,  large  and  varied. 
What  practical  suggestions  does  she  have  for  the 
bringing  up  of  her  younger  sister? 

[200] 


The  Rewards  of  Virtue 


The  answer  seems  to  be  suggested  by  the  brothers, 
and  is  given  in  the  form  of  a  parable.  It  may  repre¬ 
sent  the  conclusion  reached  after  an  informal  discus¬ 
sion  of  the  matter  by  the  group.  “If  she  is  a  wall, 
steadfast  in  chastity  and  virtue,  one  on  whom  no  light 
advances  can  be  made,’’  then  they  will  honor  and 
exalt  her,  as  if  by  building  to  her  memory  a  monu¬ 
ment  with  turrets  of  silver.  But  “if  she  be  a  door, 
lightminded  and  accessible  to  seduction,’’  then  she 
will  be  confined  behind  closed  doors  with  boards  of 
cedar. 

This  naturally  leads  to  a  declaration  from  the  bride. 
Her  life  has  been  as  a  wall,  a  tower  of  strength,  a 
fortified  castle,  secure  against  even  a  thought  of  im¬ 
purity;  and  it  is  because  of  her  spotless  purity  that 
she  has  been  exalted  and  honored  in  the  world.  It 
was  for  this  that  “in  his  eyes  she  was  as  one  that  had 
found  peace.”  It  was  her  virtue  that  exalted  her  to 
be  queen.  Her  experience  is  a  concrete  example  of 
the  practical  worth  of  true  and  noble  living. 

She  illustrates  the  principle  in  another  way.  Sol¬ 
omon  has  a  vineyard  near  Mt.  Lebanon.  He  let  out 
the  vineyard  to  keepers.  Each  keeper  was  to  pay  a 
rental  of  a  thousand  pieces  of  silver.  She  also  has  a 
vineyard,  her  beauty  and  her  virtue,  which  is  in  her 
own  keeping;  yet  Solomon  shall  have  the  thousand 
fold  reward,  because  she  is  all  together  his  and  lives 
only  for  and  in  him.  But  also  those  that  keep  the 
fruits  thereof,  her  mother  and  her  brothers,  who  had 
taken  such  a  thoughtful  interest  in  her  welfare  in 
youth  are  also  to  share  in  the  reward.  They  are  to 

[201] 


The  Song  of  Solomon 


have  two  hundred  pieces,  a  double  tithe,  as  a  twofold 
reward  for  their  solicitous  interest  in  her  proper  bring¬ 
ing  up.  Thus  the  poem  closes  with  the  thought  dwell¬ 
ing  upon  the  deepest  interests  of  domestic  life.  The 
solid  ideals  of  true  character  are  held  up  for  our  ad¬ 
miration  and  appeal  is  made  to  our  respect  and  rever¬ 
ence  for  the  integrity  of  the  home. 

The  last  two  verses  form  an  epilogue  to  the  play. 
They  are  the  language  of  the  bride  addressed  to  the 
king.  She  refers  to  him  in  the  joyous  role  of  dwelling 
in  the  garden,  the  beautiful  grounds  of  the  royal 
palace,  with  a  happy  company  of  friends  about  him 
eager  to  hear  his  voice.  She  is  likewise  anxious  for 
his  comforting  words.  “Make  haste,”  therefore,  she 
urges  him,  to  come  forth  from  the .  court  circle  and, 
like  a  young  roe  or  a  young  hart  sporting  upon  the 
hills,  let  him  spend  his  time  henceforth  in  the  “moun¬ 
tains  of  spices,  ’  ’  the  free  open  region  of  love  and  beau¬ 
ty,  typical  of  their  holy  and  sacred  devotion  to  each 
other. 


[202] 


